The Bookworm and the King
by SamBelle
Summary: Slight AU about Hermione before and during the war and then continues with her life after the war. Emerging from number 4 Privet Drive came seven Potters, each with their own guardian. Four got onto brooms, two onto thestrals, and one got into the sidecar of a motorbike. They took off into the night sky, each heading towards a different location.
1. Chapter 1

****A/N: This first chapter (and sort of the second chapter) is there to pretty much just explain a bunch of stuff that will be referenced back to later in the story. It becomes more romantic and readable in chapter 3. A lot of it will be one shots that are loosely connected and some chapters will follow directly on each other.****

 ** **Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter universe.****

Hermione's life hasn't exactly been easy. Her parents divorced when she was two. Her mother married another man and moved to D.C., forcing three year old Hermione and her father to come along.

Her mother wasn't the most loving person. Hermione was born prematurely and her mother suffered from terrible post-partum depression, and has been struggling to bond with Hermione ever since. Her stepfather was a very cold person and never truly welcomed Hermione into his family. Her father was a gentle and kind man, and Hermione was his whole world.

When she was four, Hermione and her mother got into a terrible car accident. Her mother had a few cuts and bruises, but Hermione had several cracked ribs, internal bruising, and a torn spleen. The doctors said Hermione was very lucky. She has a rare condition called Situs Inversus, which means that her organs are positioned in a mirror image from the normal positions, and the debris shredded her spleen and not her liver. Hermione recovered, but from that day she would get terrible stomach cramps and nausea for no reason at all. She had to get used to it, because doctors could find no explanation for this and her mother and stepfather stopped believing her after a while and told her to stop lying.

On her tenth birthday, Hermione received a letter from Hogwarts, the school of witchcraft and wizardry. She received the letter one year earlier than normal, because she was a very talented witch and Dumbledore(the headmaster) has chosen to let her join early, but she did not know this yet.

Her third year at Hogwarts, her stepfather started beating her mother. He always had a problem with drinking, but it had never been this bad before. Hermione couldn't say anything, because she knew her mother would deny it.

Fifth year at Hogwarts had been the worst. During the summer, Hermione got terrible cramps that would not go away, so her father took her to see a healer. Turns out Hermione was sexually abused when she was a child. The healer said that she had been raped repeatedly between the ages of 3 and 6, and that she doubted any muggle doctor would have picked it up. Hermione went to therapy, but she couldn't remember who did it, although everyone suspects it was her stepfather.

After being caught in the hallway with Harry by Professor Umbridge, she was questioned on whether she was part of Dumbledore's Army or not. Professor Umbridge didn't believe Hermione, but had no proof against her. Eventually Umbridge tortured Hermione using the water-cure method, a method where the victim is forced to drink water until their stomachs can take no more and they puke it all up, or the torturer hits them until they start puking. Then they are forced to drink water again. This process is repeated until the torturer is satisfied with the answer. Two hours of this method and Hermione still denied any involvement with Dumbledore's Army, and Umbridge started to believe her.

Professor McGonagall was furious when she found out how Hermione had been interrogated, but there was no one she could tell that could do anything about it. Professor McGonagall was in a bad mood for a week. What kind of teacher, what kind of Head of House, could not defend her students from medieval torture?


	2. Chapter 2: Deathly Hallows

Emerging from number 4 Privet Drive came seven Potters, each with their own guardian. Four got onto brooms, two onto thestrals, and one got into the sidecar of a motorbike. They took off into the night sky, each heading towards a different location. Not long after, they were being pursued by Death Eaters. There were jinxes, hexes and curses flying left, right and centre.

Hermione was on a thestral with Kingsley. They were both firing off spells at lightning speed, while dodging ones coming their way. So far they were doing very good, until one curse managed to slip through and hit Hermione square in the stomach. She gasped and doubled over in pain, nearly falling off the thestral. "It's a girl. This isn't Potter" she heard Bellatrix say . Suddenly all the Death Eaters stopped following them and went after the others. Hermione could see blood running down the thestral's side as she battled to keep her eyes open.

Once they landed, Kingsley immediately carried Hermione inside, wrapped a towel around her abdomen and took the portkey. It took all her willpower not to throw up as they spun to the Burrow. When everything stopped spinning Hermione grabbed Harry and hugged him. "Where's Ron?" she asked. "We don't know. You are one of the first ones back" Ginny answered. Hermione fought back the pain in her abdomen, using adrenaline to keep her standing. She refused to go lie down at let Mrs Weasley fuss over her, not until she knew Ron was safe. Her knees gave in the second after she hugged Ron. She remembered falling, then everything went dark.

Hermione woke up in Ginny's room. Ron, Harry, Ginny and Mrs Weasley were all looking down at her. "Hermione, sweetie, can you hear me?" Mrs Weasley asked. Hermione nodded. The events of the past few hours were all rushing through her head. "Is she going to be okay? What kind of curse was it?" she heard Ron ask. She didn't need to ask these questions, she knew. She wished she didn't, but she did, "Female Infertility Curse" Hermione whispered. "They used it to eliminate their options for the real Harry. It only works on girls. There is one for males as well, but the incantation for the female one is shorter" Hermione explained. Hermione hissed as Mrs Weasley wiped the blood away from the wound just left beneath her belly button. "You're going to be sore for a while, but you will be fine" Mrs Weasley said. "But she won't be able to have children?"Ron asked. Mrs Weasley shook her head.

*#*#*#*

Hermione couldn't wait for "a while" to pass. Every time she breathed or bent at the waist an unbearable pain coursed through her. It started in her lower abdomen and spread until even her fingers and toes were tingling. She should have been lying down, she should have been resting. There was still a long road ahead and she needed to save her strength, but she couldn't just sit there. She needed to move, she needed to feel like she was being helpful. Mrs Wesley gave her light jobs to do, just to keep Hermione from thinking too much. She just needed "a while" to be over.

*#*#*#*

Hermione laid crying on her bunk. Turns out "a while" was a relative term. It has been months and she was still sore, at least every time it was cold or she had to move. Considering it was winter and she was hunting horcruxes, that meant all the time. She was so mad at Ron for leaving. Couldn't he see how important helping Harry was? Couldn't he see how much she was hurting? Didn't he care?

Hermione had started feeling normal again. She could move around again with relative ease and get up without feeling like she was being disembowelled with a spoon. Then came November, and with it came the cold. Hermione's wounds hurt as if they were new. For every movement it took all her power not to scream out. The cramps became almost unbearable, but Ron was there. He took care of her. He brought her tea and hot water bottles to help with the pain and talked to her until she fell asleep.

Ron was the only one who could make her feel better. Ron knew how to help her, but he left her. Now that he was gone, she had to spend more nights out in the cold without any hot water bottles, and Harry didn't have much to say. Right now Hermione just felt miserable.

*#*#*#*#*

Nobody noticed just how badly injured and underweight Hermione was until after the war. Hermione was often very nauseous while they were on the hunt, and because they had limited resources she often ate nothing in fear that she might puke it all up again. Her ribs and collarbones stuck out against her pale skin. She was covered in burns and bruises from the vault in Gringotts. Beneath her bellybutton was an 4cm-long scar from the previous summer, next to it was a burn-like wound that the Cruciatus curse had left on her stomach. She had a similar one on her chest, beneath her right collarbone. On her left arm she had the word 'Mudblood' carved into her arm, and the wound was still scabbed over.

Fleur had tried to treat Hermione after she was tortured with the crucio curse, but didn't realise how bad it was. Only after the war did they see how close Hermione came to being tortured to insanity. She could relapse and have seizures or cramping fits that come and go for the next ten years. The scar on her arm would heal, but will never go away, and her uterus sustained pretty permanent damage. "We can try and remove some of the scarred tissue once she is fully healed and stronger, but now it will accomplish nothing" Madame Pomfrey explained.

 **A/N: Fred didn't die in this story**


	3. Chapter 3

Hermione woke up gasping for breath, her right hand on her chest and her left arm cradled against her side. Her throat was sore, so she supposed she had woken up screaming. The pyjamas stuck to her skin from all the sweat, and her hair and face felt clammy from all the tears. "Are you okay, Hermione?" Ginny whispered. Her silhouette was illuminated by the moonlight shining in through the window. Hermione nodded. She didn't trust her voice enough to speak.

Hermione checked her watch. It was just after four. She took a deep breath and slipped out the door. She took great care not to let the stairs creak as she went down the stairs. Hermione made herself some tea and stood by the window and watched as the sky started getting lighter and the stars get dimmer. Once her tea was finished she went into the living room and picked a book out of the shelf. She had read this book before, but right now she just needed something to help pass the time.

She made it all the way to chapter five before sleep caught up with her. That is how Mrs Weasley found her two hours later: curled up in an armchair with an open book in her lap. Mrs Weasley carefully threw a blanket over Hermione's sleeping form and went into the kitchen.

Hermione woke up hours later. The sun was already high in the sky when she entered the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Afternoon" Fred said jokingly. Hermione rolled her eyes and gratefully accepted the apple George offered her. Through the window she could see Harry and Ron sitting beneath a tree discussing something. Just then, Mrs Weasley entered the kitchen. "Oh hello, Hermione dear. There's still some water left for a shower if you want one. I'll quickly fix you something to eat." Before Hermione could protest, Mrs Weasley had already ushered her out of the kitchen. "Guess I'm taking a shower then" Hermione muttered.

In the bathroom, Hermione slowly removed her clothes. Her muscled still ached from all the torture they endured. Her bones still felt like somebody was methodically breaking them into a million pieces. Her entire body throbbed and felt as if it was on fire. She looked at herself in the mirror. Her bones were still sticking out even after being in the care of of Mrs Weasley for two weeks. She still had the burn-like wounds on her stomach and chest, and her arm still had the word 'Mudblood' carved into it. Every now and then her arm would get this shooting pain that shot through her like lightning. When that happened her wound would occasionally ooze out blood as well. She looked at the tired face, the bloodshot eyes, hollow cheeks and limp hair. The terror in the eyes staring back at her, wondering is they would ever sleep through the night again.

After a very late breakfast, Hermione wrote to Professor McGonagall. She wondered if it would be possible for her to do her NEWT's the following week, seeing as she already knew the work, and wasn't sure if she would be returning to Hogwarts the next year.

Hermione woke again the next morning out of breath and shaking from head to toe. It was just after midnight, but Hermione knew sleep would not come unless she was with Ron. Ron's smell and soft snoring had always calmed Hermione, and she knew without it she would be up all night.

Hermione snuck upstairs and into Ron's room, only to find that both he and Harry were wide awake. "Hey" Ron said, a smile appearing on his lips. "Can't sleep?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded. "Neither can we" Ron said as he got up to hug her. "Mione, you're shaking all over. What's wrong?" he asked. "Just really need some sleep" she answered. Harry and Ron pushed their beds together to make one big bed and piled all the pillows and blankets on top. Then they all crawled in, Hermione in the middle, Ron on the right and Harry on the left. It wasn't long before they fell asleep, and they stayed asleep until well into the morning. It was the best they had slept in months.

For the next week Hermione studied for her NEWT's. she set up timetables and read and reread books at a dangerous speed. Obviously, she received an 'Outstanding' for every subject she had. After taking her NEWT's, Hermione decided it was time to go home. Professor McGonagall went with her to restore her family's memories, and then explained everything that had happened. Hermione's father immediately contacted the therapist McGonagall had recommended, and already knew quite a bit about PTSD, seeing as he had served in the Royal Navy. Professor McGonagall left, feeling confident that Hermione was well taken care of.


	4. Chapter 4: First Date

It's been two months since the end of the war. Things were starting to go back to normal, Hogwarts started looking like Hogwarts again and people were no longer hiding from the Death Eaters.

Ron was pacing. If he continued pacing, his mother would be missing a living room floor very soon. "Just go ask her already. Worst case scenario is she says no" Ginny said annoyed. Ron had been pacing on that same spot for almost an hour now. Ron just shook his head and kept pacing. "So let me get this straight: Dementors, Death Eaters, giant snakes and Voldemort- no problem. You barely break a sweat, but asking Hermione, whom you've known for years, out on a date is too much for you?" Ginny continued. "You've technically been dating for the past two months, what's the big deal?" "We've never actually gone on a date before" Ron answered. "So what. Just go ask her. Go on. Shoo, before I tell Fred and George" Ginny threatened. At this, Ron took off and disapparated just outside the garden.

Meanwhile in D.C. , Hermione's father just took Hermione's plate away. "You didn't have to do that, you already brought me breakfast in bed" Hermione said while sitting up. Her father shook his head and put his hand on her shoulder. "It's just really good to have you back, even if I didn't really know you were gone" he said. Hermione had only just started to act like herself again recently. Her body still hurt from all her injuries, but not as much as they used to. There was a loud popping noise and a knock on the front door. "I'll get that, you get dressed" he said, closing the door behind him.

At the door was one very out of breath Ron. "Good morning, Mr Granger" he wheezed. "Ron, what happened to you?" Mr Granger asked. "I forgot how far the US was from England, even by apparition" Ron answered. "Mr Granger, may I steal Hermione for the day?"

Ten minutes later, Ron jumped up when Hermione's door opened. "Ron, when did you get here?" she asked while hugging him. "Will you go on a date with me?" Ron blurted out, turning redder by the second. He was mentally cursing himself. This was the exact way he had asked Fleur Delacour, who was now married to his oldest brother, out years before. He remembered all too well how that went. No "Hi, nice to see you again" or "How are you" or "You look beautiful"'s, just straight up yelling out the question he was burning to ask. Would he always be this way around girls he liked? "Of course" Hermione laughed. Even Mr Granger couldn't help smiling at the sigh of relief that escaped Ron. So far so good.

"So, where are we going?" Hermione asked once they were standing behind a bush in her backyard. "It's a surprise. Close your eyes" Ron smiled. He took her hand and they twisted on the spot, disappearing into thin air. Twenty seconds later they felt their lungs inflate again and they were standing in an alley behind a restaurant. "Italy" Hermione said slightly out of breath, reading one of the signs. "Florence, to be exact. You said last time you were in Italy you skipped Florence and Venice because you spent so much time in Rome" Ron said. "You remember that? That was years ago" Hermione asked, clearly touched. Ron smiled. "Lead the way" he said with a bow. Hermione walked with a spring in her step, looking just about ready to burst.

"Florence is just beautiful" Hermione said for the tenth time that day. They have visited a few cathedrals and art museums, eaten lunch at a local cafe, and were now walking along the Ponte Vecchio, a medieval stone bridge with little shops built along it. Ron even bought Hermione a bracelet with little owls dangling from it. "Are you having fun?" he asked after he helped her put it on. "Yes Ron, this is lovely" she answered, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "We're not done yet" he smiled.

An hour later, just after sunset, Ron and Hermione were walking hand in hand down a small road in a Scottish village. They had just watched the sunset from one of the hills and were now heading towards a pub Professor McGonagall had mentioned once. The pub had a very old fashioned Scottish feel about it, and was very different from the Italian cafe they had eaten lunch at, but was charming in its own way. "It was certainly more homely" Hermione thought as a man wearing a kilt brought them each a menu.

It was almost ten pm when they left the pub and decided it was time to go home. "It's going to feel so weird getting home and realising it's only five in the afternoon" Hermione said. "Yeah, I forgot about the time difference" Ron said. Hermione turned to kiss Ron. It was a slow and gentle kiss, and both of them regretted having to come up for air. "We should do this again" Hermione said, still slightly out of breath. "Definitely" Ron smiled.


	5. Chapter 5

Hermione was crying. She's been crying for a while now. She didn't want to do this, but she knew she had to. How could she not? She had seen the way Ron had played with Teddy last Sunday. 

She tried to see a way around this, but she knew that it wasn't fair towards Ron. He would understand, at least she hoped he would. She really didn't want to do this, but it was the right thing to do, and doing the right thing was almost never easy. Hermione wished with all her heart that there was some other way. She loved Ron so much and she didn't want to hurt him, but it was because she loved him that she had to do this. 

So Hermione closed her eyes and turned on the spot. A few seconds later she found herself standing just outside of the Weasley garden. She opened the gate and knocked on the back door. Ron opened it. "Hermione, what's wrong? What happened?" he asked. Hermione simply took his hand and led Ron up the stairs to his room. She closed the door and sat down on the bed, gesturing for him to do the same. 

"I need to break up with you" she said through the tears. "Why? Was it something I did?" Ron asked. He was getting worried. This wasn't like Hermione at all. The Hermione he knew didn't make rash decisions. Hermione shook her head and took a deep breath. "Mione, talk to me. I'm getting worried" Ron moved closer to her and put his arm around her shoulders, but she didn't lean into him like she always did. 

"I can't expect you to stay with me, Ron. You know what Madame Pomfrey said. I can never have children, and although that day might still be far away, I know you want to have kids of your own. I saw the way you looked at Teddy and his grandmother on Sunday. You will be a great father, but you can never be a father if you stay with me" Hermione stopped to catch her breath and wipe her eyes. "I want you to be happy, I want you to have a family, and because of that I am breaking up with you. There is no reason why we both have to suffer." 

Ron waited patiently for her to finish, his own eyes filling with tears. He couldn't stand to see her in so much pain, and words cannot express how touched he was that she was willing to let him go so that he didn't have to suffer like her. "Mione, don't talk like that. I can never be happy without you. Look at me" he said, lifting her chin so that her brown orbs met his blue ones. "You have no idea how much I love you. The pain of losing you will overpower all the happiness I will ever feel holding a child. I came alive when I met you, and I do not want to lose you. Please don't do this Hermione. I made a promise to never leave you again, and I am a man of my word. Your love is more than enough. It doesn't matter if you can't have children. All I need is you." 

At this point tears were streaming down both their faces. Hermione kissed Ron on the cheek. "But you cannot promise that you won't hate me for it" she whispered. "I could never hate you" Ron answered. Then Ron leaned in and kissed Hermione. They stayed that way, holding each other in a warm, slow kiss for a long time. Finally they had to break apart for air. They panted, their foreheads touching. "Don't leave me" Ron begged. "Never" Hermione answered.


	6. Chapter 6

It was the second week of July. Hermione has read every book she could get her hands on, and thus, having nothing to do, she began pondering about the future. "I have to go back" Hermione said to her father as she entered the living room. "Go back where, honey?" he asked, patting the couch next to him, gesturing for her to sit down. "I have to go back to Hogwarts" she answered. 

For the past two and a half months Hermione has been debating this topic. Should she go back, or should she try and move with her life. She already had her NEWTs, so she didn't really need to go back, but something inside of her kept pulling her back. In the end, after making various lists and researching every option, she made the illogical choice to go back. It just felt right. 

"Why? I thought you said you weren't ready to go back" her father asked. "I know. When I made my choice I wasn't ready, but I am now. I need to go back. I will never forgive myself if I don't. Hogwarts has been my second home for a long time. No matter what was happening, I always felt safe there, until the war. I have so many memories there. I need to go back and remind myself why Hogwarts changed my life. I need to end the Hogwarts chapter in my life with happy memories and laughter, not death and destruction. I do not want to spend the rest of my life wondering what might have happened if I went back" Hermione explained. 

Her father nodded and gave her a hug. "Then you go back" he said. It has been decided, Hermione Granger will be going back to Hogwarts.

 ** **A/N: Sorry for this pathetically short chapter, but it needed to happen in order for the next chapter to make sense. Please review. Thank you banzi for your reviews, they are appreciated.  
****


	7. Chapter 7

Hermione boarded the Hogwarts Express for her final year at Hogwarts. There were a lot of memories attached to that place, some good and some bad. She couldn't help but wonder what the castle would look like. It was a very emotional train ride, especially for the eighth years. Hermione was sitting next to the window. Ron, Neville and George were all squeezed in next to her. On the other side of the compartment sat Harry, Ginny, Luna and Fred. Fred and George were desperately trying to keep some form of conversation alive, but nobody else felt up to it. 

The twins had decided to go back to school after all. They left Lee Jordan in charge of their shop and arranged with Professor McGonagall to go back there on their free afternoons and the weekends. 

After an uneventful carriage ride and feast, Professor Flitwick called all the eighth years out of the Great Hall. He led them to a corridor near Gryffindor Tower and stopped at a painting of an old witch sleeping in her chair next to her cauldron. He said the password and the painting swung forward. Inside it looked like the Gryffindor common room, with a fireplace, windows and big comfy chairs, but the room was decorated with the colours of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw as well. "This is the eighth years' common room. No Slytherin student came back after last year" Professor Flitwick explained. 

There were doors leading to bedrooms in two of the walls, three on each side. "Each room can take 2 people. We will let you decide amongst yourselves who shares with who. Boys and girls will not share rooms" Flitwick said before leaving. "Oh, you can enter your house's common room by climbing through the hole behind your house's banner, but ONLY for your house." 

Harry and Ron quickly paired up, Ron looking apologetically at Hermione. The twins took their trunks into the second room on the left wall, and Neville and Ernie Macmillan took the room next to them. Seamus and Dean took one of the rooms on the right and Cho and Padma Patil took another. This left Hermione and Luna with the last room on the right. Hermione didn't really mind sharing with Luna, anything was better than sharing a room with Parvati and Lavender. 

First day of classes passed without much happening. Bill Weasley was the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, which everybody was happy about. Professor McGonagall told Hermione that since she already did her NEWTs, she didn't really need to show up for class, as long as she still handed in her homework. Hermione decided that she would skip the boring classes, such as the History of Magic, to go read or help Hagrid with his lessons. 

Hermione couldn't sleep. She hasn't really slept since she got back to Hogwarts, but tonight was by far the worst. Every time she closed her eyes Bellatrix was there, or she was watching Dobby bleed out on the beach, or Ron and Harry were missing. No matter what she did, she could not sleep. Eventually Hermione got out of bed and slowly walked to the door. She was still shaking from the last nightmare. She quietly walked to Harry and Ron's room and opened the door. The second she shut the door, both Ron and Harry's wands were shining. "Sorry" Hermione said, feeling quite stupid now. "I couldn't sleep" Both Ron and Harry gave her understanding looks as Ron lifted the covers off his bed and gestured for her to get in. 

The next morning, Harry, Ron and Hermione were woken by a furious McGonagall. She didn't say anything, but she didn't have to. At breakfast, Hermione tried to read the lips of the teachers to find out what Professor McGonagall was going to do. "Hermione, stop worrying. It's not like we did anything, we just slept in the same bed. Relax and eat something, please" Ron begged. When George and Fred came in, Ron silently gestured for them to sit across from Hermione, blocking her view. 

"Those kids fought a in war. They have been through things we haven't even experienced. It's perfectly normal for them to seek comfort in each other when they cannot sleep" Professor Sprout said. "But what if they do more than just sleep? What do we do then? Just allow it?" Professor McGonagall asked sceptically. "Not to burst your bubble, but I doubt that Miss Granger and Mr Weasley will be doing anything more than kissing together. From what I've heard from Pomfrey, Miss Granger is still very far from being ready for something more, and Mr Weasley wouldn't try to take advantage of her" Professor Flitwick said while buttering another slice of toast. "What about the rest of them? Mr Longbottom and Miss Lovegood, Mr Potter and Miss Weasley?" Professor McGonagall asked. "We will just have to trust them. They have all seen some hard times" Professor Sprout answered. 

One afternoon, Professor Flitwick found Hermione in the library and asked her to come with him. On the second floor he led her to a rather large room. In the corner there stood a piano, and in the middle there were benches of different heights. "This was the old choir room, we have a new and bigger one now. I heard you like to play" he said gesturing at the piano. "I thought it might help if you could let everything you're holding back out through the music" "Thank you, Professor" Hermione said smiling. She knelt down and gave him an awkward hug.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Please review**

The eighth year common room was silent, the fire dancing in the fireplace. Hermione was sleeping in Ron and Harry's room again. She was lying on her side, her head resting on Ron's broad chest, their breathing perfectly in sync. Since she has moved into Ron's room a month ago, Hermione's been sleeping a lot better. 

It was a little after three when Hermione's breathing became more rapid. She started tossing and turning, and her hand started to jerk on Ron's chest. "Shh, it's okay. I've got you" Ron whispered sleepily, tightening his grip around her waist. Hermione started going still, and Ron turned on his side, cradling her head against his chest. 

Suddenly Hermione started shaking. Ron woke up instantly. Hermione's entire body was jerking rhythmically and she was groaning. In one quick move Ron swooped her up and deposited her softly on the carpet in the middle of the floor. "Harry!Harry, wake up!" Ron yelled while summoning a towel. Harry woke up with a start and put on his glasses. "Ron, what's going on?" Harry mumbled as he turned the light on. "Go get Madame Pomfrey, Hermione's having a seizure" Ron replied. 

Harry bolted out of the room and tore down the corridors towards the hospital wing, ignoring a yelling Mr Filch as he went. He didn't give a rat's arse about students out of bed right now. Ron had laid the towel underneath Hermione's head, positioning her on her side to prevent her from choking on her vomit. He lifted her nightshirt and gently inserted the needle above her bellybutton, squeezing the syringe. Now he had to wait for the potion to do its job. The past minute had felt like an hour. In his mind Ron was counting the seconds since the seizure had begun. "Eighty one, eighty two, eighty three…" 

After two and a half minutes the thrashing started slowing down. Finally it stopped. Ron had been kneeling next to Hermione, and he reached out a hand to squeeze her shoulder. "Hermione. Mione, can you hear me? Come back to me Mione" he said. He started stroking her arm and talking in a soft tone, waiting for her to regain consciousness. Another two minutes passed, and Madame Pomfrey followed an out of breath Harry into the bedroom. "How long?" she asked as she knelt down next to Hermione. "One hundred and fifty seconds" Ron answered. 

Hermione started stirring a minute later. Madame Pomfrey had taken her heart rate and blood pressure, noting that her BP was slightly higher than usual. Ron was stroking her arm, and Harry was just standing there, unsure of what to do with himself. "Welcome back" Ron said when Hermione finally opened her eyes. Her hand reached up to touch her cheek, which was covered in vomit and saliva. She looked around, her eyes going from the bed to the trunks, to the table and the ceiling, before finally stopping on Ron. She frowned, looking confused, just staring at Ron. She continued staring at Ron for a few long seconds. "Ron?" she finally whispered. "I'm here Mione." Ron moved closer and hugged her to his chest. "I'll get vomit all over your shirt" Hermione said weakly. She was back. Ron just hugged her tighter. They stayed that way for a while. 

Hermione clung to Ron as if he was the only thing keeping her in this world. "What's wrong Mione?" Ron asked concerned. "Dizzy" she mumbled. Ron held her with his left arm, his right hand brushing up and down her side. Suddenly Hermione jolted upright. "Miss Granger?" Madame Pomfrey asked. "I think I'm going to be sick." Hermione covered her mouth with her hand. Ron helped her up and quickly walked over to the bathroom. Hermione immediately hunched over the toilet, heaving until there was nothing left to come out. 

Ron wiped her face with a wet cloth as she leaned against the wall. He kissed the top of her head and took her hand. "Let's get you to bed" Ron said as he helped her up. Hermione grimaced as she held onto Ron. "Are you in pain, Miss Granger?" Madame Pomfrey asked from the door. Hermione nodded, slowly making her way towards the bed, leaning heavily on Ron. "Where does it hurt?" Madame Pomfrey asked as Ron settled Hermione on the bed. "Everywhere. Arms, legs, sides,head, back and stomach" Hermione answered weakly. Madame Pomfrey lit her wand and looked into Hermione's eyes. Then she gently lifted Hermione's shirt and started to palpate her abdomen. Hermione winced, her stomach tightening. Ron took her left hand in his and gave it a strong squeeze. "It's going to be okay, Mione" he said gently. 

Hermione laid back against the pillows, closing her eyes tightly."It will take a while for the potions to kick in" Madame Pomfrey explained to Ron before leaving. A few minutes later Hermione's breathing deepened and evened out. "She'll be okay. She's tougher than she looks" Harry said while getting into bed. "I know" Ron replied, using his wand to turn out the light.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Please review**

Ron and Hermione were walking hand in hand next to the lake, watching as the water lapped gently on the shore. They were done with classes for the week, and they had the entire weekend to finish their essays for Herbology and Potions. Tomorrow was the first Hogsmeade weekend. "Hermione" Ron said, stopping suddenly. She turned to face him. "Harry and I were talking, and we came up with this idea." Hermione snorted, clearly finding this very amusing. "And what idea might that be, Ronald? How many rules will be broken?" Ron cringed at the use of his full name, but continued. 

"You see, we heard the twins talking, and they said that tomorrow instead of going to the shop they are going to visit Charlie in Romania. They plan to apparate from Hogsmeade so nobody will notice. As far as I know they aren't breaking any rules. They never told us not to apparate from Hogsmeade as long as it is within curfew hours. Just think, it really is a great plan." Ron said excitedly. 

"When has it ever been a good idea to copy Fred and George?" Hermione asked sarcastically.

"Oh come on Hermione. Harry and I were thinking on taking you and Ginny to Paris. We can go there and explore for a bit and be back before curfew. Nobody will suspect a thing."

Hermione still looked doubtful. "I don't know Ron" she said.

"Just think about all the places we can go see, both magic and muggle. Don't tell me you're not interested; I've seen you read books about Paris in the library."

At this Hermione looked touched. He remembered that? It was such a tiny detail from ages ago. "Okay, but we have to be back before curfew, and I think we should tell Professor McGonagall." she said.

"And take all the fun out of it? No way" Ron said shocked.

"I still think we should tell somebody we're leaving the country, and I don't think it should be Hagrid. He doesn't have the best record when it comes to secrets" Hermione said smiling.

"Your father then? He won't tell anybody but will know what to do if we get into trouble. He also won't fuss as much as my mum will."Ron suggested. Hermione nodded. Ron jumped and hugged her in excitement. Then he grabbed her hand and took off towards the castle to go tell Harry. 

Later that night Ron was leaning against a bookcase watching Hermione. She left immediately after eating, and Ron knew there was only one place she could have gone: the library. She was currently hunched over three insanely large books, taking notes on the history of various locations and memorising a map of Paris. Ron thought she looked beautiful. She was wearing a red sweater and jeans, and was frowning while subconsciously playing with the back of her quill over her lips. Her eyes were darting back and forth across the page at an alarming speed. Ron went over and hugged her, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin. "Ronald Weasley, how many times do I have to tell you to stop doing that?" she yelled while lowering her wand. "Sorry, I thought you saw me" Ron apologised. Hermione sighed and closed the book in front of her before grabbing the next book from the pile and started paging. "Hey, relax, we'll be fine. This isn't some test you can fail. You probably already know more than any tour guide." he said brushing a hair from her face. She smiled at him. 

"You look tired, how are you feeling?" Ron asked carefully. Hermione had a seizure four days ago, and although she's been feeling better she was still pretty shaken by it. Hermione looked at her hands in her lap, twiddling her thumbs. "I'm okay now. I just felt so helpless and dependent Monday. Usually I can tell when I'm about to have a fit or seizure, but this one caught me off guard." Hermione admitted. "You were sleeping. You can't be expected to be alert all the time Mione" Ron said sadly as he took her hands in this. "I wish this could all just be over. I am doing fine and just getting control over my life back and then Bellatrix is back and this happens. Even in death she still controls me. Every time I take a shower or bath, or when I wear short sleeves she is there, mocking me." Hermione cried, pointing at her left arm. Ron brushed her sleeve up and kissed the scar. "You know what I am reminded of every time I see that scar? I am reminded of just how strong you are Mione. Despite all that pain you still managed to lie. Even after all of that you got up and you fought back. Don't let that little cut control you Hermione." Ron wiped the tears from her cheeks and leaned in to kiss her. Madame Pince gave a load cough in the background, but Ron ignored her. "I'm glad you talked to me, you can always come to me about anything, no matter how small." he said. They both got up and started walking towards the exit. 

On their way back to the common room they ran into an ecstatic Mr Filch. "Students out of bed" he shouted at them. When Peeves heard this he stopped to watch the little encounter. "We're allowed to be out of bed. It isn't nine o'clock yet Mr Filch." Ron said irritably to Mr Filch, who was downright jumping for joy at this point. "Oh yes it is" he said while fumbling for his pocket watch. "See here. It says…eight fifty five" he finished sounding very disappointed. "Well, get to bed you two. It is almost nine" and with that he turned around and walked away, his shoulders hunched over. Peeves was following him down the corridor laughing and yelling things like "Students out of bed at eight fifty five? How dare they?" 

The next morning Ginny, Harry, Fred, George, Ron and Hermione all left for Hogsmeade straight after breakfast. They had decided to disapparate from the Shrieking Shack, because people were less likely to notice then. Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione bid the twins farewell before heading off to the spot Hermione said should be safe to apparate to. 

Once in Paris they all got on a city tour bus, Hermione acting as their tour guide. Hermione, having memorised a map of the entire city, knew all the short cuts so that they could see as much as possible. They saw the Conciergerie, Palais Garnier, Tuilries Garden and Musee de I'Orangerie, Sainte-Chapelle, Sacre Couer, Notre Dame cathedral, Arc de Triophe and Louvre museum (where Ron just had to make the comment about the Mona Lisa not having eyebrows). They then crossed the Pont Alexandre III bridge to get to the Eiffel Tower. It was getting late in the afternoon and the sun was starting to sink lower, and they were very grateful for the one hour time difference. 

Harry, Ron and Hermione had a moment of nostalgia on top of the Eiffel Tower. It reminded them of how they stood together on top of the Astronomy tower at Hogwarts after Dumbledore's funeral, and how Hermione told Harry that they were in this together. So much has changed since then, and they realised just how clueless and carefree they were before the war. After they got down the two boys told Hermione and Ginny to continue to the last location Hermione had chosen without them. The girls were suspicious but let them go anyway. The last place they went was to Pere Lachaise, a cemetery with beautiful sculptures as tomb stones. As they walked though the cemetery, Hermione explained the history to Ginny. When she was finished she added "What do you think the boys are up to?" "Do we really want to know? I stopped asking that question after Ron showed me the ghoul in the attic. Some questions are best left unanswered." Ginny responded. 

The boys joined them in a garden outside the cemetery forty minutes later, each carrying a wrapped package and a huge grin. "What?" Ginny asked after they just continued to stand there. "We got you something" Harry said, looking chuffed to bits. "Did you now?" Ginny said while rolling her eyes. After another ten seconds the boys finally handed over the packages. Hermione and Ginny carefully unwrapped the gifts. Ginny got a big slap of French chocolate and an elegant silver charm bracelet from Harry. Hermione got a music box from Ron. It was a deep navy blue with a golden pattern running across the box. When she opened it Swan Lake started playing. There was a glass ballerina wearing a silver dress and shoes slowly rotating to the music. The interior of the box was a light blue with thousands of tiny snowflakes painted over it. "Thank you" was all she managed to say. She kept looking at it until the music stopped. "This is beautiful Ron. I love it." she said, wiping the tears away with her sleeve. She gave Ron a tight hug and a kiss. 

They arrived back in the Shrieking Shack just before Fred and George. As they walked back they talked about their days. After dinner, Ron pulled Hermione away from the Great Hall and into an empty classroom. "I have one more gift for you" he said pulling a small purple container out of his pocket. "When we slipped away this afternoon I went by the magic hospital in Paris. I wrote to them last night so they were expecting me. This is a cream they invented for scars made by dark magic. It won't take the scar away, but it will stop it from bleeding again and will make it lighter so you won't notice it as mu-" Ron was cut off by Hermione kissing him. Her eyes were filled with tears and she lost the use of her voice, so she just held him, kissing his cheek over and over. "How?' was all she managed to get out. "After you went to sleep I borrowed Harry's cloak and snuck back into the library. I found a book in the restricted section about treatments for wounds made by dark magic and found a place in Paris that made this cream" he said, handing her the container. "I love you" Hermione croaked. "I love you too."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:Please review**

The classrooms were empty, the moon was full, and a thick fog hung over the castle grounds at Hogwarts. The common rooms and dormitories were dark and silent, the beds cold from the lack of students warming them. In the distance you could hear music playing. 

The Great Hall was packed with students, teachers and ghosts, all dressed up for Hallowe'en. Jack 'o lanterns lit the hall in an eerie light. There were tables against the walls packed with all sorts of foods, snacks and drinks. Everybody was either dancing, chatting or playing games. At that moment, Ron was playing a round of 'Pin the Head on the Headless'. Members of the Headless Hunt let themselves be blindfolded, then they must take three steps forward, leaving their heads behind and spin their heads. The player (Ron in this case) has ten seconds to direct the head back to its body. It is a challenge, especially if you consider that there are at least five ghosts per round, and they often find that their heads are on the wrong bodies. 

Meanwhile, Fred and George were looking for people to join them in a round of Hallowe'en Hide and Seek: the Hogwarts edition. For this, the players divide into teams of four or five, and they need to find as many ghosts wearing a band of their team colour as possible in one hour. The problem is that Peeves always insists on playing, and usually causes trouble. Three years ago, he set a herd of centaurs on his team to prevent them from finding him. 

In the corner, Hermione was chatting with Cho (and Ginny, until she left to join George's team). Hermione was very happy with where she was standing. From here, she could see everything that's going on. She could see Ron desperately trying to win 'Pin the Head on the Headless' against a bunch of drunk seventh years, she could see Seamus trying to teach Nearly Headless Nick and Hagrid how to do the Irish Jig (for reasons unknown) and she could see Luna and Professor Trelawney doing the weirdest moves that didn't match the music at all. All was right with the world. 

It was still early, but the party was starting to die down. That was because those who haven't passed out drinking yet (over the age of 17, because McGonagall jinxed the alcohol) was either busy hunting ghosts, or snogging in some empty classroom or corridor. Those who were still in the Hall and not passed out were all waiting for those who were passed out to wake up again, so that they could have some entertainment. To put it mildly, watching a Scotsman playing the bagpipes upside down while the Irish tried to jig while zonked was all the entertainment a first to third year could ask for. The older ones had other ways of amusing themselves. 

Ron nearly got himself hexed when he snuck up on Hermione after losing for the fifth time. "Ronald Weasley, if you want to be turned into a toad then keep doing that!" she yelled, putting her wand away again. The war might be over, but she was still far from letting her guard down. "Sorry, do you want to go see what Peeves is up to?" Ron asked. 

At two o'clock the next morning, the party was finally over. The hospital wing was full. Half of the patients had too much to drink, the other half had nothing to drink, and was there because they tried to. Peeves collaborated with Fred and George, and scared the life out of the group of fourth years playing hide and seek by attacking them with some special fire crackers. Peeves also got the fifth years stuck in the same type of swamp Fred and George put in one of the hallways a few years back. After Fred's team won (no surprise there), Peeves suggested that they all go scare the people snogging in the dark. 

Peeves's idea became an instant legend. Everybody that had been playing (and Ron and Hermione, although Hermione claims Ron spiked her drink and she would have never done this otherwise) had one giant mud fight in the swamp and almost completely forgot what they had been doing. Once they were muddier than anybody thought possible, they went back inside the castle, making two of Filch's worst nightmares come true: students out of bed and muddy floors. 

Everybody had fun playing this game. Not only did they have to find and scare the unfortunate couples, but they also had to avoid Mr Filch and his cat. By the end of the game, Madame Pomfrey had a few more patients, most of whom were hexed by startled couples. 

Harry, Ginny Ron and Hermione walked back to the Gryffindor common room laughing harder than they had in a long time. "This was fun. I just have one question: How long do we tease Padma about her hexing her own boyfriend instead of Ron?" Ginny asked.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:Please review**

Snow was covering everything in a beautiful white coat. It was the first time Hermione had ever seen snow on the beach. She, Ron, Harry, Ginny, Fred and George asked Bill if the can borrow Shell Cottage for the Christmas holidays. After the war, Bill and Fleur had moved back to the Burrow until everything went back to normal.

The cottage was decorated with Christmas lights, stockings, mistletoes(which Ron set up everywhere as an excuse to snog Hermione more often), wreaths and a Christmas tree in the living room. Everybody was gathered around the fireplace on Christmas eve playing Cards Against Humanity, and Hermione repeatedly shocked everyone with her wicked sense of humour.

The past week had been wonderful. Everybody got up when they wanted and ate whatever they could find that sort of went together. (Ron once had a breakfast of boiled eggs, strawberries, left over spinach and peanuts.) Then they spent the rest of the day taking walks, reading, playing games or watching films. They would have dinner together and then sit around the fire and play games or talk until they went to bed.

It started snowing on Wednesday, and the twins started a massive snowball fight with everybody else. They had used the perfect strategy to get everybody involved; they threw the first ball at Hermione, which immediately meant that Ron was involved. Harry soon joined to defend his best mate and adopted sister, and Ginny automatically joined to support her boyfriend (and to throw snowballs at her brothers). the fight went on for nearly an hour, Hermione using charms to make the snowballs harder and more accurate. After everybody was completely frozen they went inside for some butterbeer.

The next day they all went ice skating on a nearby frozen lake. Harry and Ron were both rubbish at this and spent more time on their butts than on their feet. Hermione desperately tried to teach them just how to stand up and go forward, but gave up after an hour of no improvement.

On Christmas day it stopped snowing and the sun reflected off the white beach. Everybody apparated to the Burrow, where they had lunch with the Weasleys and Hermione's father. After dinner everyone opened their gifts. (Ron got yet another maroon jersey from Mrs Weasley). Ron got Hermione a snow globe of a castle. The base was royal blue with silver patterns over it. The castle looked like it come from a fairy tale. When you wound it up, it played the Nutcracker. "This is beautiful, thank you Ron" she said with a kiss. Hermione got Ron an autographed book about the Chudley Cannons. As an added Christmas present, Hermione found out that she was getting a younger brother.

Hermione's father used to be in the Royal Navy, but after moving to D.C. he joined a special task force for UNICEF. While helping in Liberia after the recent Ebola virus outbreak he befriended an orphaned boy named Daniel. Mr Granger was now in the process of adopting Daniel and moving back to England to be closer to Hermione. Kingsley even helped him get a place twenty minutes from Grimmauld Place. Hermione was overjoyed. She had always wanted a sibling, and was very happy that her father was going to be living nearby.

The next few days were mostly spent inside with the couples cuddling and the twins testing new merchandise for the shop on everyone. They played more board games and drank more cocoa and butterbeer that week than they had in their entire lives. There were a few more snowball fights and sledging adventures before the year started drawing to a close.

On New Year's everybody got wrapped up in blankets on the roof to watch the fireworks. As always, the twins outdid themselves with their firework display. It even included the patronuses of everybody in the family. They had made it through another year, something they had not thought possible when the war began. After many "Happy New Year!"'s and quite a few snogs, a bottle of firewhiskey was passed around to help 'deal with the cold'.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:Please review**

In early February, one last cold front crept in over night. This rapid change in temperature had caught everybody off guard since the past few days have been warmer. For the past few weeks Hermione really started acting like her old self again, but the past week she had been in a rather funny mood, acting rather impulsively and almost childish at times. Yesterday she had eaten a combination of peanut butter, ham and tomato on her toast, completely freaking out Ron and giving everybody else quite a good laugh at his reaction.

Hermione and Ron both woke up early to get ready for school. Hermione was the first to get out of bed to go to the bathroom, but came running back and got straight back in bed, pulling the covers over her head. "Come on Mione, we're going to be late" said Ron as he pulled the covers down. "Hhhmmm not getting out of bed today, it's too cold" moaned Hermione, snuggling deeper into the covers. "Mione, we need to get to class" Ron said as he tickled her playfully. "I refuse to get up" said Hermione as she slapped his hands away. "Are you telling me that you, Hermione Granger, are going to stay in bed and skip class?" asked Ron disbelievingly. "I don't see why not. I don't really have to be in class, and I started the book Dad sent me last night and I would like to finish it." said Hermione from somewhere beneath the covers."And what about breakfast?" laughed Ron. "Not hungry. I'm a little nauseous, and there's no way I'm getting up in this weather. It makes my stomach hurt more than usual." Ron nodded sympathetically. "Okay then, can I at least get a kiss before I go?"

Downstairs Ron told everyone how Hermione had refused to leave the bed. "Well I can understand her not wanting to get up, it's absolutely freezing" complained Ginny. "Do you think she'll really skip class?" Harry asked , he was rather doubtful that she would be able to stay away the entire day. "Three galleons says she won't make it till lunch before joining us" Fred said taking the coins out of his pocket. "Two says she cracks before the end of Herbology" Ginny laughed. "No way, if she's smart then she'll wait until after Herbology so she doesn't have to walk all the way to the greenhouses" George chimed in, and thus a betting pool was started. Many students placed bets on just how long Hermione would be able to stay away. On his way to class Ron stopped by the kitchens to ask the elves to take some food up to Hermione.

Hermione still hadn't shown up by the end of the third lesson, which meant that half the students already lost the bet. Ron was rather surprised that Hermione hadn't shown up yet. He walked into Transfiguration and sat down. It felt strange not to see Hermione's bushy hair next to him. The bell rang and Professor McGonagall entered the classroom. "Where is Miss Granger?" she asked Harry and Ron. Harry tried his best to keep a straight face at Professor McGonagall's reaction to Ron's answer. "She's still in bed, she refused to get up this morning Professor" Ron said, sounding rather confused. "And you are sure that it was Miss Granger? Is she feeling alright?" asked Professor McGonagall looking quite shocked. "I think so, she said she was feeling nauseous and that the cold made her stomach hurt more, but she seemed okay" Ron answered. With that Professor McGonagall sent Ron to go check on her, giving him permission to skip the rest of the day's classes.

When Ron entered the bedroom he found Hermione asleep on the bed, the book still clutched in her hand. As he tried to remove the book she started to stir. "Ron, what are you doing here? What time is it?" she asked sitting up. "Professor McGonagall sent me to check on you. It's almost lunch" answered Ron. "I'm fine, and I don't want any special treatment" she said, turning her back on Ron and lying down again. "You still haven't eaten anything" said Ron gesturing to the untouched plate. "I just have a headache. I'm fine Ronald" Hermione answered, clearly annoyed. Ron sighed as he got in bed next to her, taking out his homework. "Get some sleep" he said.

Half an hour later Ron finished his essay, and Hermione was still awake. "I can't sleep, I want to know how the book ends." Hermione mumbled as she turned to face Ron. Ron kissed her head and leaned over to get the book o the night stand. He opened it and started reading the last thirty pages of Great Expectations. "Thank you" said Hermione. She was smiling as she leaned over to kiss him. In her glassy eyes he could see that the headache was still there. He turned so that he was lying with his chest against her back. He started stroking her arm and told her stories about the betting pool and everybody's reactions to her staying in bed. After a while he felt her breathing even out a she drifted off to sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

Ron was really nervous. He didn't know why he was so nervous, he's been planning this moment for months. It was April 15th, Hermione's birthday, and Ron was planning to propose to her. He planned a picnic lunch with a few friends and got Mr Granger's blessing weeks ago.

He got up early to set everything up. Harry helped him lay out the blankets beneath a tree near the lake while Fred and George were fetching the food Ron had asked the elves to prepare. Ron decided not to tell anybody that he was proposing today, to make sure that Hermione was surprised.

Ron's hand kept travelling to his left pocket to feel the blue velvet box. The ring he had chosen was en elegant silver band with a fine gold pattern on it that matched her wand's. Right in the middle there was a tiny diamond embedded in the pattern. Every time he felt the box his heart skipped a beat.

Finally the clock struck twelve and it was time for lunch. It was supposed to be a cool, clear day, but it was not. Even wizards cannot control the weather; where the morning had started out nice and warm, it was now cloudy with a light wind. If this weather keeps up it will probably start raining in the afternoon.

The food was delicious. There were various types of sandwiches, some fruit, boiled eggs and treacle tart. They also had some firewhiskey to make a few toasts later. After eating everyone laid down to look at the clouds. Hermione was laying with her head on Ron's shoulder. It had been silent for the past few minutes, but just as Ron started opening his mouth, Fred starts talking. Talking about absolutely nothing at all, and he would not stop. He and George kept this up for a good ten minutes. Finally silence returned, and Ron turned to Hermione, then, as luck would have it, Ginny started mentioning Quidditch. Before she got very far though, Ron put his hand over her mouth and turned to Hermione. Realising it was now or never, Ron gathered his courage. "Hermione, I need to ask you something." Removing his hand from Ginny's mouth, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring. "Hermione, will you please marry me?" he asked in a shaky voice. Suddenly everybody sat up, and Hermione started tearing up.

"You don't have to cry about it. You can say no if you don't want to" Ron blurted out. "Nice move" Fred whispered as Ginny snorted. Hermione rolled her eyes and smacked Ron on the arm. "Of course I will marry you, you git. Doesn't mean I can't cry about it" Hermione said in her most indignant voice. At this everybody laughed. Ron leaned in to kiss her, and the twins whistled. When they broke apart, Ron was redder than a tomato, glaring at Fred. "Will you two cut it out?" he growled.

After lunch it started to rain. Everybody darted for the castle, forgetting that a little rain wouldn't really melt them. Once inside, Ron and Hermione decided to write to their parents about the news. While writing the letters, they each would look up occasionally to steal a glance of one another.

The next morning, Ron received a howler. Of course this howler would arrive while he was sitting in the Great Hall having lunch with just about everyone else in the entire school. When he finally realised what it was and started to make a run for it, it was too late. The letter burst open, and the voice of one furious Molly Weasley came booming off the walls. "RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY, WERE YOU EVEN PLANNING ON TELLING ME YOU ARE GETTING ENGAGED? WOULD I HAVE BEEN INVITED TO THE WEDDING? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU WERE GOING TO PROPOSE? WHY WASN'T I ALLOWED TO BE THERE? TO SEE MY SON PROPOSE TO THE WOMAN HE LOVES? AND WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG? YOU HAVE BEEN IN LOVE WITH HER FOR YEARS NOW. AND DON'T YOU DARE BREAK HER HEART RONALD. YOU TREAT THAT GIRL LIKE GOLD, YOU HEAR ME?"

The silence sounded so sweet after the letter exploded and Mrs Weasley's voice went quiet. Ron had turned a ghostly white that made Sir Nicholas proud, but Hermione could not stop laughing. "Mum sounds thrilled, little brother" George laughed.


	14. Chapter 14

****A/N: Thank you for reading. The song used is called Never Let Me Go by Florence and the Machine (another thing I do not own) and the piano cover I imagined is by The Theorist. Enjoy and please review.****

Thick clouds hung over Hogwarts. It had been misty this morning, but now the mist had cleared up and it looked as if might start raining soon. Hermione and Ron were walking back from Hagrid's hut. It was the first time they had gone to see him in a while. Hermione had been in the hospital two weeks ago to have some scarred tissue caused by the Infertility Curse removed, and has been taking it easy for a while.

Ron found it hilarious to see Hermione so loopy from the pain medication and often teased her about. In return Harry and the twins have been teasing him by how nervous he was to sleep without having his fiancé next to him. He was really glad to have her back and to see that she is okay.

When they were halfway to the castle the first drops started falling. The first one landed on Ron's nose, making Hermione giggle at his reaction. The rain came pouring down quickly after that. Ron started running towards the castle, but stopped when he realised Hermione wasn't with him. She was standing with her eyes closed looking up at the sky, just letting the rain fall on her face. "Hermione, come on. We're going to get soaked out here." Ron called to her. "So?" She gave a small turn in the rain, spreading her arms out and smiling at the water running down her fingers.

Ron walked over to her. She playfully grabbed his left hand and planted his right hand firmly on her waist, pulling him closer. He looked into her deep brown orbs, noting the joy dancing in them. She looked gorgeous with the smile on her face and the raindrops in her bushy hair, and this impulsiveness made him fall even more in love with her. He took a moment to just look at her. This was his Hermione, with her shy laugh, her easy smile, the long, light brown bushy hair and the pale freckles on her nose. He closed his eyes to save this moment in his memory, for he wanted to remember this moment forever. Her hand was cold in his as they started to sway.

Then Hermione started to sing. It was a song he heard her play on the piano before. It had a melancholy but serene melody, and Hermione's voice sounded so sad and sincere.

 _ _Looking up from underneath__

 _ _Fractured moonlight on the sea__

 _ _Reflections still look the same to me__

 _ _As before I went under__

 _ _And it's peaceful in deep__

 _ _Cathedral where you cannot breathe__

 _ _No need to pray, no need to speak__

 _ _But now I am under all__

 _ _And it's breaking over me__

 _ _A thousand miles down to the sea bed__

 _ _Found the place to rest my head__

He had heard her sing before, but never like this, and he was decently surprised at how good her voice was.

 _ _And the arms of the ocean are carrying me__

 _ _And all this devotion was rushing out of me__

 _ _And the crashes are heaven, for a sinner like me__

 _ _But the arms of the ocean deliver me__

As the song progressed Ron just pulled Hermione closer, making a silent promise to never let her go again. Ron wanted to stay right here, in the rain, with her until the end of time. The moment felt more magical than anything he had ever learnt in school; it just felt so pure. He never wanted to let go.

When the song ended he wished it hadn't. In that one brief moment that song became his absolute favourite, and he made a mental note to ask Hermione to play it to him again on the piano.

They walked back to the castle dripping wet and feeling lighter than they had in years. "I feel invincible" Ron said, giving Hermione's hand a squeeze. Somehow her smile became brighter.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Thank you for reading. The song used are 'The elements song by Tom Lehrer, 'Drunken Sailor' by The Irish Rovers, 'Another Irish Drinking Song' by Da Vinci's Notebook and 'The Cat And The Moon' from the Lord Of The Rings musical. Please review**

The Shrieking Shack hasn't been this full since the Marauders had roamed the Hogwarts hallways. Aside from the twins, Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione, there were at least 20 more students. Fred clapped his hands to get everybody's attention. "Okay, listen up everyone. I want to thank you all for being here" said George. Fred took over. "So we know that senior pranks are mainly an American tradition, but it is time for Hogwarts to expand its horizons and embrace new cultures. We want to take a few classic pranks and add a little twist to it. We will need everyone's cooperation; you are not to tell anyone outside this room about this. Remember, Hermione's jinxing skills have evolved since our DA days. Now, here's the plan-"

*******

Everybody was in position waiting for their signals. Dean was taking one for the team by acting as a distraction. Hermione took a whole week to plan everything perfectly. If they fail now, everything will be spoiled. They can't afford any mistakes.

A rat came scurrying down the dark corridor and past the Great Hall. "That's our cue. Cast the silencing charm, Ernie" whispered Ginny. Ernie lifted his wand and murmured a few incantations while Ginny and a few others opened the bags.

In a nearby corridor, Ron gave the all clear and started signalling for his group to split up. They each took a rucksack and snuck off. Ron kept his wand ready as he peeked around each corner.

Upstairs, Hermione and Padma had managed to sneak past a sleeping Professor Trelawney. "I need two more, then you can start the enchantments on the left side." whispered Hermione. Padma removed two more toads from the bag and handed them to Hermione. Then she got up noiselessly and started casting the enchantments. Meanwhile, Luna and Cho stood outside hidden in a crevice casting quite a few enchantments themselves. "How do you think Mr Filch will react?" Cho asked. "Oh, I don't know, but I really hope he likes it" replied Luna in her usual dreamy voice.

"Just a few more steps" Harry whispered, pulling a little harder on the rope. George grunted as he pushed with all his might. A minute later they were standing on the roof a tower. "Done, now let's get out of here" Fred whispered. As they were walking down the hallway they spotted Peeves. "Psst, Peeves" Fred called. Peeves turned around and smiled when he saw them. "Naughty, naughty. Students out of bed, I must inform Filch" he mocked. "Before you go, we have a much better idea. One that involves quite a bit of mischief" Fred smiled. "I'm all ears, lead the way" said Peeves as he followed them into an empty classroom.

Half an hour later they all met in the moonlit corridor on the way to the eighth year common room. "That's everyone. Anyone have any problems?" asked George. They all shook their heads. "Good" Fred grinned. They entered the common room and the students began climbing through the holes behind the house banners. Now they had to wait till morning for the fun to begin.

****

The sun had barely risen when Peeves entered McGonagall's bedroom with an accordion. "Ahem" he said softly in a perfect imitation of Umbridge. He inhaled as a mischievous grin crossed his face. "Oh, there's antimony, arsenic, aluminium, selenium,  
And hydrogen and oxygen and nitrogen and rhenium,  
And nickel, neodymium, neptunium, germanium,  
And iron, americium, ruthenium, uranium" Peeves sang at the top of his lungs while dancing and playing the accordion with much enthusiasm.

"Peeves! What the bloody hell are you doing?" cried Professor McGonagall. "Just waking you up. This is the seniors' last day of school you know" Peeves answered nonchalantly. "I'm well aware of that, thank you" she responded coldly. She sighed, which Peeves took as his signal. " Europium, zirconium, lutetium, vanadium"

Down in the Great Hall stood a dozen flabbergasted students. The first years were absolutely gob-smacked as they stared in awe. Before them was the Great Hall, and every single inch of the walls, floors, tables, chairs, windowsills and silverware was covered in toilet paper. They had never seen anything like this before. This took planning and determination far beyond their years. A scream came from the hallway, followed by another. A girl came running down the stairs, completely drenched. She wasn't the only one.

Ron's team had filled most of the corridors with water filled cups as was the classic prank, but courtesy of magic, they levitated the cups out of view. If you stepped on the wrong tile, the cup emptied its contents on your head; if you ran, the cup simply chased after you, as a second year Ravenclaw just discovered.

That wasn't all. A while later Mr Filch was chasing a Niffler with the number 5 painted on its back. Just after he passed, an inflated toad came floating past. Padma and Hermione had filled Professor Trelawney's classroom with toads and charmed them to sleep until morning, when they woke up they inflated and started floating all over the place.

In the middle of breakfast Peeves entered the Great Hall wearing a kilt and carrying a huge bagpipe. "ALL RISE. QUEEN MINERVA MCGONAGALL OF HOGWARTSIA IS APPROACHING" he saluted. As Professor McGonagall appeared, Peeves started playing 'Scotland the Great' on the bagpipes as it has (thankfully) never been played before. As she walked to the front of the hall she glared at the twins, who shrugged innocently. "He's Peeves. Nobody can control them" Fred commented with a wicked smile. When Peeves finally finished (a full 8 minutes later), Professor McGonagall began giving her speech. At every comma, full stop or pause Peeves gave the bagpipe a soft nudge. Realising that no matter what she did Peeves would not stop, Professor McGonagall rolled her eyes and continued.

By the end of the third class Mr Filch was ready to lose it. He found Nifflers number 1,2,3,5,6 and 8, but to save his life he could not find 4 or 7 (because they didn't exist). Every time he entered his office, there were ten more floating leaves. To make matters worse, he had to find a way to get the six full-grown Blast-Ended Skrewts off the roof. Every time the bell rang, a dozen fireworks went off (thanks to Seamus).

Professor Flitwick had given up on teaching for the day. Everything he tried to use would magically start hovering just beyond his reach, including his wand. Every five minutes an alarm could be heard going off in the library. This started after breakfast and hasn't stopped since. If you listen carefully you could hear Peeves following Professor McGonagall around. "What do we do with a drunken sailor early in the morning"

At lunch everybody got to witness (and take part in) the most epic food fight Hogwarts has ever seen. Now they understood why the Hall was covered in toilet paper (which Hermione had promised the elves they would clean up themselves). After lunch all the students stormed outside to see the seniors performing one massive line dance. Every time their feet touched the ground, fifty snowflakes escaped their wands. By the end of it the entire quad was covered in ten inches of ice. Naturally the entire school joined in for the snowball fight. Bill managed to dodge the most snowballs with his heightened reflexes. Even McGonagall (involuntarily) joined the fight. Peeves was having the time of his life floating above her singing drinking songs.  
"Now everybody's died  
So until our tears have dried  
We'll drink and drink and drink  
And then we'll drink some more  
We'll dance and sing until the morning light  
Then we'll throw up, pass out, wake up and then go drinking once again"

At the end of the day the seniors could not stop smiling. They all carried the twins around cheering. The twins made sure to mention that Hermione was responsible for making sure everything went according to plan, a task she excelled at. As they all drifted off to sleep for the last time within Hogwarts walls, they heard the sound of Peeves finishing the last song for the day.  
 _ _There's an inn of old renown  
Where they brew a beer so brown  
Moon came rolling down the hill  
One Heaven's day night to drink his fill __

__On a three-stringed fiddle there  
Played the Ostler's cat so fair  
The hornéd Cow that night was seen  
To dance a jig upon the green.__ _ ___

 _ _Called by the fiddle to the  
Middle of the muddle where the  
Cow with a caper sent the  
Small dog squealing.  
Moon in a fuddle went to  
Huddle by the griddle but he  
Slipped in a puddle and the  
World went reeling.__

 _ _Downsides went up- hey!  
Outsides went wide.  
As the fiddle  
Played a twiddle  
And the Moon slept till Sterrenday.  
Upsides went west- hey!  
Broadsides went boom.  
With a twiddle on the fiddle  
In the middle by the griddle  
And the Moon slept till Sterrenday.__


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:Please review**

After the graduation ceremony at Hogwarts, the Weasleys, Harry, Hermione and Mr Granger went to the Burrow to celebrate. They were all over 17 now, so the firewhiskey was opened and passed around.

It had been hard to say goodbye to Hogwarts, especially with Hagrid crying and making them promise to come visit. Hogwarts had been part of their lives for so long now, that it felt strange getting on the train for the last time and watching in fade from view. They were going to miss that place.

It wasn't long before Mrs Weasley started asking everyone what came next. Harry said he was moving into Grimmauld Place, and that Ron, Ginny and Hermione were free to join him, there was certainly enough space for them all. Ron and Ginny agreed, but Hermione said she was going to stay with her father to help with Daniel (who was currently at a birthday party), but would come visit and occasionally sleep over.

Furthermore, Harry and Ron were to start their Auror training in August. Everybody had done remarkably well in their NEWT's and the boys had no trouble with being accepted into the program. The twins were going back to their shop, and Ginny was going to play Quidditch for the Holyhead Harpies. Hermione remained silent. It wasn't that she didn't know what to do, it was that she had so much to do that she didn't know where to start.

Hermione had gotten a position at the ministry's Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures where she was representing SPEW. She was expected to research the elves' current circumstances, write reports, make suggestions and handle any queries about house-elves. She wasn't expected to work in an office, but simply to hand in her reports and show up at certain meetings.

Hermione also managed to get a spot on a team of researchers for the ministry about new and advanced defence against the dark arts, which meant she had even more reading to do and reports to write. She would also be training in duelling, healing and surveillance to better understand the dark arts. To help her learn more about healing, and to get hands-on experience, Hermione would be working alongside Madame Pomfrey at the hospital wing in Hogwarts three days a week.

"So Monday mornings I will be training in duelling and surveillance and will spend the afternoons doing research for SPEW. Tuesdays to Thursdays I am working at Hogwarts until five pm, Fridays I will be researching the dark arts and writing reports, and then I will have the weekends and late afternoons free to read or to snog Ron" Hermione finished after explaining her plans. She smiled at Ron. His ears had turned bright red at the last part, but he smiled back at her. He was really proud of her for everything she wanted to do to help change the world, and she was really proud of him for being accepted to train as an Auror.

Hermione wanted to become an Auror as well, but didn't pass her medical examination. The healer told her that her body needed more time to heal after the war, demonstrating that she nearly passed out if she applied too much pressure near Hermione's bellybutton, something that the healer said would go away within two to three years. Hermione then decided to work on SPEW and learn more skills before becoming an Auror.

At dinner Bill decided to take over the interrogations. "When are you two getting married?" he asked, looking directly at a blushing Ron. "Um-" "We were thinking somewhere in December so we can have a winter wedding. That way nobody will be hoping for any sunshine or nice weather, the snow will look beautiful and I can wear long sleeves to cover my scar" Hermione answered, saving Ron from admitting he hadn't thought about the date yet. They had discussed the wedding before, deciding who to invite, where it will be and what to wear, but they hadn't discussed a date yet. Ron gave Hermione's hand a thankful squeeze beneath the table, and she winked at him. Luckily Bill turned to Harry next, making Harry squirm when he couldn't say when he will be proposing to Ginny.

The reason why Harry's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water was because he and Ginny were already married. They had chosen a weekend just before finals and called Mr and Mrs Weasley, asking them to meet them in Hogsmeade. They got ministry official to do the wedding that Friday afternoon, with only Ron, Hermione and Mr & Mrs Weasley as witnesses. Having spent so much of his life in the spotlight, Harry wanted something small and private, which Ginny agreed with. They stayed at Shell Cottage for the weekend and came back on the Monday.

The wedding was kept a secret, and Harry was speechless because he and Ginny haven't discussed when to tell the family yet. He didn't want to tell them anything without Ginny's permission and was getting rather uncomfortable, but Ginny was having none of that. "Who says he's going to be the one to propose? What if I decided that I wanted to propose to him? And since when is it any of your business? I already have Ron chaperoning us everywhere, I don't need you too" she said angrily. She didn't really mean any of it, but she needed to shut Bill up, and by the looks of it her plan had worked.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N:Please review**

Since their graduation four months ago, Hermione had taken to crashing at Grimmauld's or sleeping at her dad's place. She was planning on sleeping at her father's when Ron called her on his lunch break asking her to come to Grimmauld's.

It was just after six when she arrived. She greeted Ginny and the boys. Ginny was smirking. "You haven't told her yet, have you?" she asked Harry. "Well, we were thinking it would be better to do it in person" answered Harry a little hesitantly. "Good luck with that. I need to go pack" she said patting Harry's shoulder before leaving. "Tell me what exactly?" asked Hermione with a raised eyebrow. Both boys were staring intently at their shoes.

"So let me get this straight" said Hermione half an hour later. "You were given a mission as part of the Auror training to transport a dragon? A dragon that your brother claims is not a wild beast" she said disbelievingly while pointing at Ron "to transport to a pick up point in some moor in Scotland by tomorrow night, yet you need my help with it?" Hermione finished slowly. "Yes, well, they say that he is used to people flying on his back, but we might need someone with a little more knowledge about this particular type of dragon." Ron said with a grimace. "We also need someone to help us navigate the moor." Harry added. "Is that all?" Hermione said a little hysterically. "And what if I refuse?" "Please Hermione, we really need your help" begged the boys.

Eventually Hermione agreed to help. She called her father to tell him she will be away the following day, and they couldn't help but see the humour of it all. "Just one dragon? No unicorns or leprechauns?" he asked. "Not this time" Hermione laughed. She spent the next three hours researching dragons and the Scottish moors before finally going to sleep.

Luckily the weather report was correct, and a thick mist covered most of Britain. They apparated to the valley where they had to get the dragon. Hermione knew this was a bad idea the second the lifted off and the handler started laughing. "Have you two ever heard of hazing?" she asked. This was going to be long day.

Everything was going as perfect as it possibly could when it came to dragons. They flew above the clouds to avoid being seen by muggles and were making good time. Were. Just as they entered Scotland, Gilbert got tired of playing taxi. He just gave a sudden roll and threw them off. They fell to the ground, Hermione barely having time to cast a cushioning charm.

They landed face first in the mud. Ron was the first one up, he was about to stun the dragon when Hermione yelled that they could be seen. It was raining pretty hard. "There's a pub just outside of town about a mile west" said Hermione, nodding in the direction as she brushed some of the mud off . "You okay?" Ron asked, noting that Hermione winced when she bent over to brush her hands on the grass. She nodded before taking of in the direction of the pub. The boys followed.

"Damn, I forgot she was so bloody fast" panted Ron after a few minutes. He and Harry might have played Quidditch, but Hermione ran track over the holidays and clearly still had the advantage. Harry simply grunted next to him. "Almost there, just two more minutes. Ron, do you really need five brothers, or can you live with just four?" Hermione shouted from her 3 metre lead. "I prefer to keep all my brothers. Why?" Ron yelled back. "Because I am going to kill Charlie. If that dragon is trained then Grawp is a gentleman" "If you have to kill one then kill Percy" Harry joked.

When they arrived at the pub they quickly used their wands to dry themselves before entering. Hermione went to ask for a room while the two boys took a quick look around. "Okay, the room is upstairs first door on the left" she said handing them one pair of keys. "If you want to change I brought spare clothes." she took her purple beaded bag out of her pocket. The boys shook their heads. "What do we do now?" Ron asked while rocking on the balls of his feet. "You boys get some coffee, I'm going to grab a shower" answered Hermione. "A shower? Now?" Ron asked disbelievingly. He was clearly ready to jump into action and go find the dragon. "Yes Ron, unless you want to go drop me off at St Mungo's and go on alone" Hermione said quietly, crossing her arms defensively. Ron closed his eyes and sighed before walking towards her. "Your stomach's hurting again, isn't it?" he asked consolingly. She nodded. He hugged her to him. "I'm sorry, are you okay?" She nodded again before pulling away. "It's just the cold. I'll be fine" she said as she walked away.

The boys sat down at the bar and order some coffee. "Do you think we're pushing her too hard. Hermione I mean" asked Ron taking a sip of coffee. "I think Hermione pushes herself too hard, but she seems to be enjoying the planning and adrenaline. She's a natural leader and having something like this to do makes her feel like she has a purpose" answered Harry. "But she stopped to take a shower." "She's cold. She stopped because she can, to remind herself that the war is over. We do the same by taking weekends off and not working through the night" Harry said as he finished his coffee. Five minutes later Hermione came down. "Okay so I brought a map" she said while stealing Ron's coffee. Ron gave Harry a disbelieving look while pointing at Hermione. She ignored him and opened the map.

That night they waited until everyone went to bed before taking off on the brooms Hermione had brought. After flying around over the mountain range they spotted Gilbert. "How do you suggest we do this?" Harry asked. "Well, he likes meat" Ron stated. Hermione looked at him, a smile spreading across her face.

"This is a stupid idea, remind me why I'm the bait?" Harry asked ten minutes later. "We've been over this. You're the best flyer. Just remember, the spell is Scrougify" answered Hermione after she put one of the brooms back in her bag. The plan was for Hermione to charm Harry to smell like meat. He would get the dragon to follow him while flying ahead on a broom. Hermione and Ron would be flying on Gilbert to keep him focused on Harry. Once they reached the RV point, Gilbert would no longer be their problem.

They arrived at RV point an hour later. Harry landed and quickly undid the meat charm. "Never again" he said with a disgusted look.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Please review**

Ron and Hermione landed in Switzerland. After the wedding they had changed and got to the airport to catch a flight to Geneva. They could have apparated, but Hermione wanted Ron to experience flying in an aeroplane at least once. Once they had their luggage they boarded a train to St. Moritz, where they were renting a chalet for their honeymoon.

Ron and Hermione had gotten married the night before. Ron was really nervous he was somehow going to mess up, and Hermione was nearly locked in a room by her father to keep her from rechecking every detail. At the ceremony nearly everybody had something to say (and although they were sincere, Hermione suspected this was a scheme to drink more champagne). Hagrid delivered one very drunk speech about how much he loved them and knew they would love and support each other and that they really deserved to be happy. After his speech there wasn't a single dry eye in the room, even if many will deny it.

At first the couple said that they weren't going to go on honeymoon, but between Harry and Hermione's father they didn't really have a choice. About a month ago the two gave the couple an envelope with all the details, saying that it was their wedding present. Harry also told Ron that unless they found another place and really wanted to move out, they will be staying at Grimmauld with him and Ginny. The house was big enough that they wouldn't be in each other's way.

They had dinner on the train and arrived at their chalet just before sunset. Hermione immediately called her father and Harry to let them know they had arrived and to thank them again. The view was absolutely breath-taking. They were right next to the Alps with a ski-resort within walking distance from them.

That night they watched a film before going to bed. With them being newly-weds they naturally started snogging. It got more passionate than ever before and soon Hermione's hands were in Ron's hair, and his hands were on her hips, gently laying her down on the bed. Ron started kissing her neck and she started rubbing her hands across his back under his shirt. It progressed until Ron's hands were under Hermione's shirt, his fingers playing with her bra. In a few swift moves Hermione removed both her and Ron's shirts before kissing Ron's neck. Then Ron paused for a second, his hands on Hermione's bra. He was looking at her as if asking permission. They had never gotten this far before. Hermione nodded and he unhooked her bra.

Hermione moaned as Ron trailed kisses down her torso. When he kissed her scar a stinging pain ran through her belly and she gasped. "Please. Stop" she pleaded. Ron froze. He looked at Hermione, but it was like she wasn't there anymore.

Hermione couldn't breathe. Ron was gone, he had been replaced with a dark figure. She noticed the fairy posters on her purple walls. Her belly was hurting. She begged him to stop, but he wouldn't listen. In the distance she could hear someone calling her name. She was shaking, the next minute she was back on the bed with Ron. He was cradling her against his chest, talking in a soothing tone. "You're safe, Mione. I'm not going to hurt you. Just breathe."

Hermione started crying. She felt so bad for what happened. She was trembling and felt nauseous. Ron was rubbing her back comfortingly. "I'm so-sorry Ron. I-I'm not re-ready." she cried. Ron hated seeing her in pain. He pulled her closer and put her head against his shoulder. "Shh, it's okay. Just breathe." he said in her ear. "What happened?" he asked after she calmed down a bit. "I was back in my bedroom. There was a man. The pain was unbearable. I'm sorry, I ruined everything" Hermione said softly. "No you didn't, you didn't choose this, Mione" Ron said. He took her shoulders and leaned back so he could look into her eyes. "Hermione Granger, don't you dare apologise for something you have no control of. This is not your fault. You did not ruin anything, you hear me? I love you, Mione. Nothing will ever change that." he said in a firm but gentle voice.

The next day Hermione taught Ron how to snowboard. It had snowed the previous night, and the mountains looked soft under the white blanket. They took a cable car to the top of a small slope and Hermione showed Ron the basics. After a few hours Ron really got the hang of it and they moved to a bigger slope. They spent most of the day having fun in the snow. That night they sat in the hot tub outside the chalet looking at the stars. It was so peaceful, and Hermione nearly fell asleep in Ron's arms.

They spent the next two weeks hiking, sledding, walking through town and enjoying the view. Ron even convinced Hermione to get a massage, which she only agreed to once he said he would get one with her. Hermione didn't want anyone to see the scar Bellatrix left on her stomach. The Crucio scars were gone, but the thin scar beneath her bellybutton remained. She was also worried that it would hurt and she might overreact, but in the end she enjoyed it. They also discovered a chocolate factory in town.

One afternoon they got onto the St Bernina Express and just went along for the ride. They got off in Geneva and got last minute tickets for a music show. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds were playing. The weather was perfect and Hermione enjoyed the music. Ron also liked the music, but spent more time watching Hermione's face than listening. After the show they got onto a train and slept until they reached St Moritz.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N:Please review**

Grimmauld Place was usually a silent place. Usually, but not today. Today, Ron and Hermione had offered to babysit Hermione's brother Daniel while her father had a meeting. Daniel was now four, and he was very busy. He had dark brown eyes like Hermione, but there was a little mischievous sparkle in them that Hermione's lacked. He had dark skin and curly short black hair. He was sweet, kind and overall very obedient, but busy.

At the moment Ron was wrestling with Daniel to give Hermione a moment to get over her head rush. Her blood pressure has been a little low the past few days, but she was still more than happy to entertain Daniel. Daniel simply adored Hermione and followed her everywhere around the house.

They were sitting on the floor in the living room. The entire room had been turned into one giant blanket fort. Right now they were spies on a mission to save the world. The fort was their headquarters. "You good?" Ron asked Hermione. She nodded. "I think I just need some air and something to eat. It's getting hot in here" answered Hermione, using one of their "maps" to fan her face. They all crawled out of the fort and headed downstairs.

"The food looks delicious, thank you Kreacher." said Hermione. "You wouldn't happen to know of an old cookbook with cookie recipes in them, would you?" she asked. "Kreacher remembers seeing Mrs Weasley use one from the library. Kreacher will go fetch it" Kreacher said before disappearing and reappearing with a pop.

An hour later both Hermione and Daniel were covered with flour up to their elbows. "What type of cookies are we making Mione" Daniel asked. "Chocolate chip, a little birdie told me that was your favourite" she answered. "Yay!" Daniel exclaimed, managing to get even more flour on himself. After the cookies were finished it was time for them to return to their "mission".

They took down the bad guys in one bad-ass pillow fight. Hermione felt certain she would have a bruise on her left shoulder. For a four year old, Daniel was strong. After nearly breaking a vase, Ron made the smart decision to move the chase outside.

When Harry returned three hours later he walked into a silent house. Harry knew from his own experiences with Teddy that something was up. He walked upstairs and entered the living room. What he saw explained almost everything.

Ron was leaning against the sofa, fast asleep with his heading resting against Hermione's hip. Hermione was on the couch with her legs drawn up.. Her head was resting against the back of the sofa and she too was fast asleep with one hand on Ron's head and the other around Daniel's waist. Daniel was wide awake and silently reading a book in Hermione's lap. All three of them were covered in non-popping coloured bubbles.

Harry walked over and slowly picked Daniel up after putting a finger to his mouth to tell Daniel to be quiet. Daniel smiled at him. Upon feeling the shift in weight on her lap, Hermione started to stir. She sat up when she saw Harry. "You can go back to sleep. I've got him" Harry told her. She shook her head. "I'm fine, thanks" she whispered as she got up. "You look exhausted" Harry said, gesturing for her to exit first. "I am. He is SO busy. I don't know how my dad keeps up" Hermione said as she walked down the stairs. "Probably the same way he managed you" Harry laughed.

"Uh-uh, No way. I wasn't nearly as busy when I was his age"

"Sure" mocked Harry.

"I honestly wasn't. According to my parents I was very quiet and independent and was usually reading or drawing. Plus, I was in the car accident when I was four. It hurt too much to run around all the time."

Ron woke up an hour later. Hermione was busy giving Daniel a bath while Harry tried to keep him in the bathtub. "His energy can only be challenged by Fred and George" yawned Ron. "Maybe next time we should ask them to babysit" joked Harry. "As much as I love the twins, I would like my brother to be kept away from their influences" Hermione laughed.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Please review**

It was early May, and the weather was getting warmer. Ron had just returned from a mission with the Aurors, and Hermione finished a long shift at Hogwarts. They were sitting at the kitchen table drinking tea when Ron kissed Hermione, and she deepened the kiss. They kept snogging for a while, knowing that Harry was in the shower and Ginny wasn't coming home any time soon. "I'm ready" Hermione suddenly whispered. Ron paused and searched her eyes. "Are you sure?" he asked. She nodded. "Bedroom"

Ron was walking backwards up the stairs, kissing Hermione passionately. "We have to leave a note" he panted. "Just throw a sock over the doorknob" Hermione said before kissing him further. She paused to explain at Ron's confused look. "It's a muggle thing. It means 'for everybody's safety, stay out'." Ron shrugged and put a sock on the doorknob before closing the door and joining Hermione on the bed.

Over an hour later both Ron and Hermione were lying under the covers in their birthday suits. "That was something" smiled Hermione. "Yeah." Ron was stroking Hermione's arm while she traced patterns on his chest.

"How did it feel? Did it hurt?" asked Ron carefully.

"Less than I thought but more than I hoped" answered Hermione.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"It wasn't that bad. Plus, my mind was focused on other things" Hermione blushed. "It really didn't hurt that much"

"It still hurt?" Ron asked.

"Yes" Hermione said quietly.

"Sorry" Ron apologised.

With that Hermione sat up. "Ronald Weasley, don't you dare apologise for something that's not your fault" Ron and Hermione had a habit of using each other's words against each other. Hermione continued. "Yes it hurt, but it doesn't matter. I got to be with you, something I thought would never be possible. I thought that if it was possible the pain would be almost unbearable, but it wasn't. it hurt at first, but then it just became uncomfortable and later on I hardly noticed. That is a miracle on its own. Ron. This is not your fault, this is Bellatrix's doing"

Ron still felt bad that something he did caused Hermione pain, so she let him run her a hot bath and give her a massage to make her (and him) feel better. "You'd tell me if it hurt, like really hurt, right?" he asked her while gently rubbing her lower abdomen. "Of course" she answered. "Because I really don't want to cause you anymore pain than you've already endured." "I know, and that is why I love you" Hermione said with a quick kiss.


	21. Chapter 21

For the past few months Hermione Granger had been fine. She was acting like her old self again; laughing, smiling, talking and reading. She felt happy and safe like she did before the war, but that all changed two weeks ago.

Ron had come home a little later than usual to find Hermione curled up in bed crying. He held her,whispering in her ear until she calmed down. He then moved to brush her hair while she told him what had happened. She had come home after her shift at Hogwarts and had taken a hot bath. When she washed her stomach, her fingers brushed against the scar beneath her belly button, the one from the Infertility Curse. She had gotten used to the discomfort she felt when something touched the scar, but this time a fiery pain had coursed through her, and with it, all the equally painful memories. Hermione had been silent and down ever since. She would stare off into space for long periods of time, and would keep to herself.

Tonight Ron came home to find that Hermione wasn't in their bedroom. Instead, she was sitting behind the piano in the living room upstairs. It was quiet, and Ron hoped that she would play something. He stood in the doorway, waiting. A single candle lit the room from its place on the mantle above the fireplace.

Hermione's hands hovered over the keys Hesitantly she pressed the first note. It echoed through the empty space before fading. Her movements were like liquid as music started to flow out of Hermione's hands. Ron found himself clinging to every note, following the stream. They escaped from the world, travelling to places more serene: drizzling forests with tall trees smelling of fresh rain, the sound of the calm, salty sea, the delicate scent of roses, and the moonlight reflecting off the sand in the silent desert.

She was now playing without hesitation. Her movements were elegant and fearless. The stars lit up the world as they leaned closer to listen. Here Hermione was a warrior fighting her demons, Ron could hear her command control with every sincere note.

The music had begun as a cold, soft and melancholic epicedium, dripping with nostalgia. Now it was a powerful anthem courageously raging against the silence. Hermione was at war a thousand miles away, yet she was right there. Ron's heart ached, for he wished he could take her pain away.

An imaginary orchestra joined in. There was the wailing violin; the grieving cello. The consoling double bass, the ecstatic symbols, the angelic harp and the powerful drum. They were all mourning an unspeakable loss, raging against the enemy without fear. At first they were each crying out as individuals, but eventually they united in a single defiant harmony. The song battled against everything vulgar in the world, and Ron could have sworn that he had never heard anything so beautiful.

If times were different, if they had been living in another world, Hermione might have been a musician. A musician composing masterpieces, giving a voice to those who could not speak. Creating great worlds of joy and security, but that innocence has been taken from her. Now that was not possible but for a few moments of pure grief or anger, using music as an outlet.

Tears were streaming down Hermione's cheeks as the song died away. Ron sat down next to her, just holding her to him. It had been a difficult two weeks, but she had had the chance to collect the broken pieces again. Hermione Granger was once again fine.


	22. Chapter 22

**Please review**

Ron was very excited. To be perfectly honest, he and Harry had been excited for weeks now. Tomorrow they would go to Romania for the Quidditch World Cup. The final match was between Romania and Ireland, and the tournament was being hosted by Romania. The twins, Mr Weasley, Bill, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna, Neville and Hermione were all going. Hermione wished she could take her father with, but with all the enchantments it would not be possible. "I just cannot wait" Ron said for the umpteenth time.

For obvious reasons, the same meticulous planning went into the precautions and preparations as always. Early the following morning they all set off from the Burrow to a hill to take a portkey, just as they had done the previous time.

After paying and entering the field where they would be staying, everyone took a moment to look around. It was big, noisy and cheerful. The smell of camp fire smoke and alcohol hung in the air. There were flags and banners decorating the tents and the sounds of chanting and horns could be heard all over.

Once they reached their lot, everyone helped set up the new tent Hermione and Ginny had made for Mr Weasley's birthday. It was big enough to fit 12 people comfortably with 3 bunk beds, 2 single beds and 2 double beds. There was decent sized kitchen, 3 bathrooms, 3 bedrooms and a large living room with the bunk beds against the farthest wall. The twins, Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione volunteered to take the bunk beds, seeing as they were probably going to stay up late to talk. Mr Weasley took a bedroom with a double bed, as did Neville and Luna. Bill took the remaining bedrooms, stating that he would share with Charlie, who would be joining them the next day.

People were allowed to fly around on brooms at low altitudes and do magic, because there were less muggles near by. There were so many cultures with wizards and witches from all over the world. Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione had decided to stay a little longer after the World Cup ended to tour the country. "And I thought the students at Hogwarts were bad with their rivalries before the House Cup finals" Hermione said after a few whiskey bottles went flying.

The group spread out and greeted a few familiar faces before cooking dinner. They sat around the fire discussing the odds and placing bets before heading inside. The twins set up a game of cards before everyone went to bed for a rather early night.

The next morning Ron carefully climbed out of bed, being sure not to disturb Hermione as he dropped down to the floor. She let out a soft whimper and he stopped to stroke her hair before going to get dressed. Hermione had had a terrible night. She started out sleeping on the bottom bed, but ended up sleeping almost inside Ron on the top bunk. She had nightmares about hiding in the tent during the war and was extremely nauseous with bad stomach cramps. Ron eventually just picked her up and climbed back in bed with her curled up on top of him.

Outside, Harry and Bill were building a fire. They both looked up when they saw Ron. "Sleep well?" Bill asked. Ron sat down with a sigh. "'Mione had another nightmare. She didn't fall asleep again until four this morning. " Ron sighed ."I wish this could all just end for her. No more pain or memories." Ron put his face in his hands. Harry gave him an understanding look. He had heard Hermione whimpering, but didn't say anything. He didn't want to make anything worse. They all had the occasional nightmare, Hermione just had it worse because of all her injuries. "So where is everyone?" Ron asked. Bill told him that the twins were off to get some water, Ginny was in the shower, Mr Weasley was greeting a few people and Neville and Luna had snuck off just after dawn.

Once the twins returned with the water they made breakfast and Ron took Hermione a plate. He woke her up gently and sat down next to her. She was feeling much better and ate most of the food Ron had brought her. After Hermione's shower, the group set off to go explore and chat with a few friends.

They all left just after lunch to go meet Charlie at the gate. He had had to work that morning and managed to get the rest of the weekend off. They all sat in the living room exchanging stories until nobody could sit still any longer. The atmosphere was filled with excitement and anticipation as the sun started to set. Green jerseys and scarves were put on to show their support. The crowds were streaming down to the stadium. Banners, posters and fireworks filled the cool night air as everybody went to their seats.

The seats were great. They were sitting right in the middle with a perfect vantage point. They were nearly level with the rings, sitting just a little closer to the Irish side of the field. The crowd was cheering and chanting as the players walked onto the field and mounted their brooms. The match lasted three hours and had all the spectators on the edge of their seats. There were a few injuries and close calls, but in the end Ireland got the snitch and ended the match. The crowd went wild and the victorious celebrated in a way only the Irish could.

After everyone had left the stadium, Ginny dragged the group back. Since she was a professional Quidditch player, she had managed to get private passes for them all to go onto the field. They stood there gob-smacked looking at the thousands of empty seats and the stars shining down from the sky. Fred and George produced a bottle of firewhiskey and shot glasses and poured everyone a drink. All the boys , Luna and Ginny mounted their brooms (which Hermione had managed to pack into her beaded bag) and flew around the field while Hermione and Mr Weasley stood to watch. Ron noticed that despite having a broom, Hermione wasn't flying with them. He landed next to her and pulled her into a hug before begging her to fly around with them. "Ron, you know I don't like flying." she said softly. "I know, but this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Just go around once. You can fly with me. Please Mione, I want to share this moment with you." Hermione nodded and got onto the back of his broom with a small smile.

"Why don't you like flying?" Ron asked Hermione later that night. They were lying on a blanket next to the fire, and Ron was tracing absent-minded patterns on Hermione's shoulder. "I mean, I know you're not afraid of heights." Ron added. "It's not that I don't like the idea of flying, it's just that I never really learned how to fly on a broom. I don't feel in control. We only had four lessons at Hogwarts, and Madame Hooch spent half the time racing after Neville, so no one ever really taught me how." Hermione answered. "Do you think you would like it better if I taught you how?" Ron inquired. Hermione nodded before letting out a big yawn. It was getting late, or rather early, and everyone was exhausted. They went to bed tired but happy.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Please review**

Ron was having a wonderful dream when he heard a loud coughing noise. Then there was another one, and another. He woke to find Hermione sitting up next to him. Her face red and she was having a full blown coughing fit. Ron held her and gently rubbed her back until her breathing had evened out. "Mione, are you sick?" he asked. He only received a grunt in return.

Ron helped Hermione lay back down and felt her forehead. She had had a runny nose the previous day, but she seemed to have gotten a lot worse since. Hermione's breathing sounded laboured and she had a fever. He reached over to put on the light and she let out a soft whimper, using her arm to block out the light. "Head hurts" she croaked out in a hoarse voice.

Downstairs Ginny found Ron making tea and looking through all the cabinets. "What are you doing?" she asked. Ron spun around at the sound of her voice. "Mione's sick, she needs something to eat" "Just ask Kreacher to make some soup then" Ginny suggested. "Could you do that? I need to get back to Hermione" Ron said as he rushed out of the kitchen with a cup. Ginny just laughed. He could get so flustered when it came to Hermione.

Hermione was hunched over the toilet when Ron found her. She was extremely pale and her red nose stood out on her face. Ron handed her a glass of water and used a cloth to wipe her face and neck. He noticed that Hermione remained still and was slightly curled around her abdomen. "Where does it hurt?" he asked softly. "Everywhere" she whispered "My body just aches" Ron carefully lifted her and laid her back on the bed. He took out his wand and ran a diagnostic spell. "You have a flu honey. Does your stomach hurt?" Hermione nodded, curling into a tighter ball beneath the covers before falling asleep.

When Ginny brought the soup up an hour later she found a very worried Ron desperately trying to distract himself by reading. "How is she?" asked Ginny, taking a seat next to Hermione and placing a cold hand on her forehead. Hermione leaned into her touch. "The same" Ron muttered while wiping his face. "Her fever's getting pretty high. If it doesn't break soon we'll need to take her to St Mungo's" said Ginny.

Hermione woke up a little later. Ron tried to get her to eat, but she really wasn't feeling up to it. "Mione, you need to eat something so we can give you some potions." Hermione placed a hand on her stomach and took a deep breath. "Do you want to take a bath?" Ron tried. Hermione nodded.

Ginny and Ron helped guide Hermione into the bathroom. She sat down on the toilet, holding her head as she waited for the dizziness to pass. Ron had asked Ginny to help get Hermione in and out of the bathtub, fearing that he might hurt Hermione if he tried to do this alone.

Once the water was a decent temperature they placed one sore Hermione into the water. After a while she started to cool down. Hermione vomited again the second they took her out of the tub. Back on the bed Ginny convinced her to take a few sips of water before force-feeding her some soup. Ginny cared for Hermione but wasn't going to be as nice as Ron was. Hermione needed to eat, and eat she shall.

When half the bowl was gone, Ginny was satisfied and gave Hermione a potion. "This tastes disgusting but it works like a charm" she said. Ron laid down beside Hermione watching her sleep. Every now and then he would use his wand to take her temperature. At two o'clock the next morning Hermione's fever finally broke.

Ron continued to feed Hermione soup and help her to the bathroom to go vomit again until the following afternoon, when Hermione finally started feeling better. Unfortunately Hermione spent the next two days taking care of a sick Ron.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: so the story about the Nutcracker follows canon, but i had to change it a bit to make it appropriate for a four-year old. Thank you for reading and please review.**

The fire was burning in the fireplace. The faint smell of cinnamon filled the air. Hermione and Ginny were sitting on the rug in front of the fireplace painting Christmas ornaments. Music was softly playing in the background. Harry and Ron were sitting in a windowsill sipping eggnog while watching the snow fall slowly to the ground.

They were in Norway. They had arrived the previous day by train, which was quite a long ride if you consider the fact that Daniel and Hermione's father had come with. Daniel spent the entire trip saying how much this felt like The Polar Express, his favourite Christmas film. They were renting a small chalet near a village on the edge of a frozen lake, right next the woods.

The scenery was beautiful; snow covered mountains, the icy lake and the barren trees. They had also seen a little stream, a few rabbits and a deer on their walks. It had been Hermione's idea. When Ron asked her what the one thing was that she had always wanted to do, she said that she had always wanted to see the Northern Lights, and now here they were, in the north of Norway, the ideal spot to see the Aurora Borealis.

Mr Granger was putting Daniel to bed while the girls were preparing to decorate the tree. The boys were still staring out into the darkness. The clouds hung thick in the sky, but a few bright stars still managed to shine through. The moon was shining bright, reflecting off the clouds and shining on the lake. The scene looked so serene and elegant, the different shades of blue shining everywhere.

"Why can't we just decorate the tree with magic?" asked Ron when he heard Hermione get up. "Well that would just defeat the purpose, now wouldn't it?" Hermione retorted. "Doing this by hand makes all the more special. We want to do it together as a family" Mr Granger said as he entered the room. Crookshanks lifted his head from his spot in front of the fire. Upon realising that nothing new was happening, he dropped back down and went back to sleep.

"We are doing this for Daniel. We want him to continue believing in magic" explained Hermione as she put up the first ornament. "But there really is magic. He's seen you use it loads of times." Ron said, sounding very confused. Hermione sighed and went to sit down next to Ron. "I know, but once he turns six I have to obliviate all the real magic from his memory. He will remember the feeling of seeing magic, but he won't remember it. Kingsley is already taking a risk by allowing this. I just want him to have a few memories of magic that I won't have to erase. I always want him to believe in the possibilities, the wonder, of magic. I want that feeling to stay alive forever." Ron cupped Hermione's cheek in his hand and gave a nod before getting up to help with the decorating.

"Oi! I see it. I see the lights."Harry exclaimed. He pulled the curtain back and got up to run outside. Ginny, Mr Granger and Hermione followed, but Ron ran the opposite direction. "Ron?" Hermione asked. "Go ahead, I'm just grabbing Daniel. We have to show him the magic" Ron yelled over his shoulder. Hermione couldn't help but smile as she walked outside to join the others. Ron emerged seconds later with a still sleepy Daniel in his arms. Ron crouched down, allowing him to sit on his knee. Hermione crouched down next to them as Ron pointed to the opening in the sky where the multi-coloured lights were dancing across the sky. Daniel's face immediately lid up as any sign of sleep disappeared. Hermione gave Ron a look to show her appreciation for the way he was treating her brother. Ron grinned and mouthed the words "I understand now" to her. Ginny smiled at Daniel's reaction and turned to Harry. "That will be us someday" she whispered. Mr Granger gave Hermione a comforting hug when he saw her sad smile, knowing that she had overheard.

The next morning was spent bob-sledding. Little Daniel had bee afraid at first, but before Mr Granger could make a move, Ron had already taken Daniel's hand and said that he will go down with him. He also whispered that he was afraid his first time as well. They slid down the hill, and Ron fell off the back just before they reached he bottom. Hermione shook with laughter. Ron threw a hand full of snow her way, and she simply charmed up a few birds to fly around Ron's head mockingly. After a late lunch they all walked into town, Ron chasing Daniel down the narrow lane. Hermione and her father were very glad to see the two bonding so well. Mr Granger decided that they were going for a sleigh ride, and rented a sleigh and two horses.

Once they had gone all around the town with the sleigh, they went for a little window-shopping to get everything they might need for the next few days before stopping at a cafe for some hot cocoa. The sun started to set as they walked through the central square, Ron carrying Daniel on his shoulders. There was a huge Christmas tree with little lights in the square, and all around people were singing carols. Daniel let out a big yawn and Hermione suggested that they start heading back.

After some butterbeer and gift-wrapping, everything was stacked neatly underneath the tree before everybody headed to bed. Ron held up the covers as Hermione exited the loo and switched of the light. Once Hermione was tucked in on her side, Ron spoke. "I get why your father adopted him. He's a great kid, I really like him" he said. "He's very fond of you as well" Hermione yawned. It was silent for a moment, and they heard a wolf howl in the distance. Then Hermione turned a bit so she could see Ron. "I'm sorry I can never give you that" she said softly. A ray of moonlight shone between the curtains and illuminated her face. Ron propped himself up on one elbow with a sigh. "It's not your fault, Mione" he said. "I wish you would stop apologising for it. I love you, and that's all that matters. Sure, I will miss a few moments, but I will have loads of nieces and nephews to play with. Honestly, I would rather have you with me for the rest of my life. My only regret is that you still have to suffer the pain." he leaned down to kiss her forehead, placing his left hand on her lower abdomen. Using his shoulder, he gently rolled her onto her side so that her back was nestled against his chest. He kept his hand on her stomach, tracing delicate patterns on her soft skin until she had drifted off to sleep.

They were woken the next morning by a screaming Daniel. He was bouncing on the bed, yelling that Santa was there and they had too get up NOW. He rushed out the door and stormed downstairs. Ron rubbed his face and Hermione let out a groan before dropping back onto her pillow. "At least I will never have to deal with that, that is the parents' problem" Ron yawned.

Downstairs, Ron was still in caveman mode as he shuffled around the kitchen making coffee. Hermione was in the bathroom. Harry and Ginny came strolling down the stairs. "We heard the excitement." said Ginny. "Who didn't?" Ron grunted. "Aren't you in the Christmas spirit? Anyway, we thought we should get up before Daniel dragged us out of bed." Harry smiled. If Ron had been less asleep he would have noticed the love bite at the base of his sister's neck. Luckily for his best mate, he didn't. But the love bite didn't go unnoticed by Hermione. She gave the couple a teasing grin as she asked whether they had had a good night, looking straight at Ginny's neck, causing them to blush. Daniel chose that exact moment to burst through the door to check on the hold up.

Daniel sat in front of the pile of gifts when they entered the room. While he was handing them out, Harry was busy starting a fire. Daniel was absolutely ecstatic. He had gotten a fire-engine, Legos, a sweater from Mrs Weasley, some safe firecrackers from the twins, a Nutcracker soldier and a dragon toy. Daniel went to Hermione and asked her what a Nutcracker was. Hermione smiled as he sat down on her lap. "I need to tell you the whole story so you can understand." she explained.

"Once upon a time, on Christmas eve, a family was sitting around a tree celebrating Christmas. When the clock struck eight, a strange man appeared. It was Uncle Drosselmeyer. He had brought dancing wooden toys for the children. When it was time for bed, he had the toys put away for safekeeping, but he showed the children one last thing: a nutcracker carved in the shape of a man. Clara was fascinated by the nutcracker, but none of the other children seemed interested. Fritz, one of the boys, broke the Nutcracker's arm. After everybody had gone to bed, Clara returned to the parlour to check on the Nutcracker. As she reaches his little bed, the clock strikes twelve. Suddenly, mice begin to fill the room and the tree begins to grow, as did the Nutcracker. Clara soon found herself in the middle of a battle between the mice and an army of gingerbread and tin soldiers. The Nutcracker was leading the army. As the Mouse King came closer to the wounded Nutcracker, Clara threw him with her slipper. That distracted the Mouse King long enough for the Nutcracker to defeat him. As the mice retreat, the Nutcracker transforms into a prince and leads Clara into a forest, where snowflakes danced around them to beckon them into his kingdom. The Prince and Clara travel to the Land of Sweets, which was ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy until the Prince returned. He told her all about the battle and how Clara had saved him. In honour of Clara's heroism, there was a celebration. Sweets from all around the world danced for their amusement: chocolate from Spain, coffee from Arabia, tea from China and candy canes from Russia. Even the flowers did a waltz. To conclude the night, The Sugar Plum Fairy did a final waltz before ushering the Prince and Clara towards a sleigh. The sleigh took off with the Prince and Clara waving goodbye. The end." Daniel's eyes shone. "Again, again" he begged. "Maybe later" she smiled.

It had snowed the previous night, and the snow was nice and thick outside. Hermione helped Daniel put on his new sweater before she, Daniel and Ron went outside. They started by making a classic snowman, using an old Gryffindor scarf, some pebbles and sticks and a carrot to complete the face and arms. Hermione laughed at the face Ron pulled when Daniel tossed a hand full of snow in the air and some hit Ron's long nose. He grinned back at her, staring at her face. Her cheeks and nose were red from the cold, the freckles on her nose were standing out against her skin, she was wearing the scarf he had given her on their anniversary, her eyes were shining and there was snow stuck in her curly hair. Ron couldn't help but fall madly in love with her all over again. "I'm the luckiest bloke in the world" he whispered. Just then, Hermione fell back to make a snow angel. Daniel copied her, begging Ron to make one as well. "You're going to make a pretty big one" he stated. Mr Granger took a picture of the cold, smiling faces. "This is the best Christmas ever!" Daniel exclaimed.


	25. Chapter 25

**Please review**

Ron entered the magic library near Grimmauld. He knew Hermione was in here somewhere, she had to be. He found her sitting at a table next to a rather large pile of books. She was taking notes while her hand repetitively tugged random curls behind her ears. Ron snuck up behind her and placed his hands over her eyes. Hermione tensed for a second before smelling his scent and relaxing.

Ron sat down next to her. "Fancy going out tonight?" he asked with a big smile on his face. He still couldn't get over the fact that he could say those words with such ease now, after all the years of wanting to say them but never being able to. "I would love to, just give me a minute; I'm almost finished." she smiled back. She scrawled down a few more sentences before closing the book and standing up, notebook in hand. Ron grabbed the pile of books and got up as well.

Hermione led them through a maze of shelves, occasionally stopping to return a book to its shelf. "So is this research for the dark arts, or for spew?" Ron asked. Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's S.P.E.W., not __spew__ , and you know it." she said, sounding annoyed, but she couldn't help smiling. "And I was doing research on both. I have a report to write for the task force, but I also found books about the elves." "So how is it going with spew anyway? Are you making any progress?" Ron asked. He had a mischievous smile on his face, he knew how much it annoyed Hermione when he did this. As they turned a corner, Hermione glared at him.

"Say __spew__ one more time, Ronald. I dare you" she said in a dangerously low voice. Ron swallowed. He knew she was serious, but she looked so hot when she was angry. She continued glaring at him as she placed the last book back on its shelf, waiting for a response. Ron gave in to the sudden impulse he felt. He leaned forward and kissed her, pulling her close. Hermione was shocked at first, but was quick to kiss him back. "Ron, we're in public" she whispered. "So?" he asked. They were standing safely in a corner behind a wall of shelves, nobody could see them.

Ron leaned down and kissed her again, this time a little more passionately. As the kiss progressed, Hermione found herself pressed against a wall next to the shelves. There was a soft thud as her notebook fell to the ground. Hermione's hands were now knotted in Ron's hair, and his hands were behind her neck and on her hip. When they finally pulled apart, they were looking into each other's eyes, panting slightly. Hermione felt a blush creep onto her cheeks. "We should probably go before this gets out of control" she smiled.

#*#*#*#*#*#

Ron and Hermione were in the garden trying to plant the rosebush Mr Granger had given his daughter for Christmas. After the bush was in the hole and covered up, Ron had smeared Hermione with mud, starting a mini, and very spiteful, mudfight.

Hermione ran up the stairs to the bathroom, Ron chasing after her, smearing her with mud. "Sorry Kreacher" Hermione squealed after Ron missed her arm and got mud on the wall instead. She tried to shut Ron out of the bathroom, but he was too strong. Ron started the shower while Hermione removed her dirty clothes, tossing them unceremoniously on the floor. She got in the shower and sighed as the warm water hit her back. Ron, seeing an opportunity, grabbed the shampoo and began washing her hair. While she rinsed her hair, he took his own fair time washing her torso. She let out an involuntary whimper at his touch.

Ron smiled at her, looking chuffed. Hermione rolled her eyes and took the sponge from him. "My turn" she grinned. She began washing him, going down painstakingly slow, taking even longer at his hips. Ron swallowed, averting his eyes from her body. He had started a game he could not win. She wanted revenge, and he felt himself starting to lose control. "You're not playing fair." he moaned. "What's not fair is you getting mud in my bra so that you had an excuse to take your time washing, and staring at, my boobs." Hermione pouted. He smiled and kissed her.

After they finished washing each other very thoroughly, Ron handed Hermione a towel and went to go fetch some clean clothes. "This means I win, right?" Hermione yelled happily from the shower.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Please review**

Hermione woke up and slowly climbed out of bed, making sure not to disturb Ron. On the stairs she did her best to avoid the planks that creak as she headed down to the kitchen. She returned half an hour later with a levitated tray containing two cups of coffee and two plates of chocolate chip pancakes (Ron's favourite breakfast that he discovered during his visit to America). Hermione placed the tray on his night-stand before leaning down to wake him with a kiss.

"Just five more minutes" groaned Ron, pulling a pillow over his face. "It would be a shame to let these pancakes go cold" Hermione smiled. With that, Ron shot up, giving his wife a proper kiss and muttered "Happy Valentine's day" before diving in.

A few hours later, Hermione received two owls in the Great Hall over lunch. She smiled as she opened the packages to reveal a bouquet of lilies and a box of strawberry chocolates. Neville and Bill immediately started to tease Ron in his absence. "The lucky bloke actually remembered" said Neville. The comment was instantly followed by: "Little brother's finally growing up" from Bill. Nevertheless, Hermione was still touched and sent Ron a message via patronus to say thanks. Her patronus found Ron in his office having lunch with Harry. "You better thank your mother for reminding you" said Harry, earning him an eye roll from Ron.

When Hermione got home after a late shift, she found Ron standing on the stairs in his pyjamas holding a rose. He gave her the rose and took her bag. "Go change into something comfortable and meet me at the back door" he grinned. Hermione smiled to herself as she went to go get changed.

The sun was pretty much set outside, the last few rays of sunshine disappearing. Ron had set up a picnic underneath a tree with jars of fireflies and bluebell flames lighting the blanket. The couple leaned against a propped up pillow and Ron reached for the basket. In the basket, Ron had packed Hermione's favourite fast food- chicken wraps- , potato salad and mint mojitos. "Milady" Ron said as he handed her a wrap. "Thanks" "Well, you deserve a little spoiling after all research for spew and dealing with my brother at work" Hermione rolled her eyes but still leaned over to kiss him. When it was time for pudding, Ron insisted on feeding Hermione her peppermint tart. "You know I've been feeding myself for a while now" she teased. "But this is more romantic" said Ron. "What do you know about romance? Back at Hogwarts you had the emotional range of a teaspoon" Hermione, however, allowed him to feed her anyway.

Once all the food was finished, they released the fireflies into the air, watching as they danced through the dark sky until it was impossible to distinguish between the stars and the insects and only the light from the blue flames remained. Ron piggybacked Hermione as he ran through the grass, disturbing a few fireflies before heading inside. The house was completely silent, for Harry had taken Ginny out for the night, and Kreacher was in his room. Ron led them to the bathroom, which was lit by scented candles and covered in rose petals. "Somebody's trying to get lucky tonight" said Hermione, laughing as Ron's ears turned red.

After undressing the two sank into the hot water, Hermione's back against Ron's chest. They just relaxed as Ron traced absent-minded patterns on Hermione's stomach. "I never thought we would have moments like this. I didn't even think we would survive the war, I wasn't even sure I wanted to after you left" said Hermione, although the last part came out as a mere whisper. Ron apologised again, but Hermione stopped him. "You can stop apologising. You've made up for that about 100 times over. You came back and that is why I love you" "Is that the only reason?" Ron teased. "Shut up" Hermione said as she flipped over to kiss him. The kiss was slow and passionate as their wet, naked bodies touched on every possible surface. When they finally pulled apart, Ron heard something along the lines of "Bed, now" escape Hermione's lips.

They got out of the tub, using magic to dry themselves. The incantation was muttered between kisses as they slowly walked towards the bed. Hermione landed with her back on the mattress as Ron reached past Hermione to get her a pillow, something they had discovered was more comfortable for her. Hermione felt something furry against her arm and saw Ila, the cat, walking across the bed. "Ron, stop" she said against his lips. "Why?" he asked, a look of concern crossing his face. "Ila is in here, we'll scar her for life" she answered. "She's a cat, she won't understand" Ron said with another kiss. "She'll understand plenty, and it will mess her up to see mummy and daddy snogging and having sex." "It's pretty hard to mess up a cat" Ron said, but he got up anyway to shut Ila out of the room before returning to the bed to shag his wife.


	27. Chapter 27

**Please review**

Ron walked into the office that he shares with Harry wearing a huge smile. "What are you so bloody happy about?" asked Harry. "I got the tickets" said Ron, waving them in front of his face. "Tickets for what exactly?" Ron rolled his eyes. He knew he had told Harry about this before. "Tickets for Hermione's birthday" Ron sighed. "So tickets to get into her trousers then?" Harry mocked. Ron glared at him. "Don't talk about 'Mione that way" he threatened. "And if you must know, this is payment for her taking me to go see the football game." For Ron's birthday, Hermione had taken him to go see a football game, real football, not American football. Ron had loved it, even if this didn't involve flying. It had also given him an idea for her birthday surprise.

A few days later, Hermione was standing in the entrance hall of Grimmauld Place, wearing a classy but casual navy blue and gold dress, matching pumps and a blindfold. "Ronald, where are we going?" she asked with feigned annoyance. "I already told you, it's a surprise" he answered, laughing at her attempted pout. "Am I at least dressed appropriately?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. Ron smiled and gave her a nod. Realising that she could not see him, he settled on a kiss instead. "I don't even know why you bothered to blindfold me. I mean, we are apparating, so wherever you take us, it will still be a surprise." Hermione continued. Ron took her hand in his and took a deep breath. "Honestly Ron, it's simply not logica-" Hermione was stopped before she could finish talking as she felt the familiar tug behind her navel.

They landed seconds later in a dark alleyway. Ron started walking, guiding Hermione as they went. "Can you please not let me fall over the passed out drunk bloke?" she asked. "Can you see?" he asked, stopping to check the blindfold. "No, but I can smell him" Hermione wrinkled her nose a bit as she said this. Once they reached the street, Ron adjusted his grip so that his right hand was on her lower back, and he was holding her left hand in his. They walked about half a block before they could hear a crowd, passing a few talking people as they went. "Are we in Germany?" Hermione asked. "Of course she understands German, she's bloody brilliant" Ron muttered. "Stop analysing and just be surprised. I promise that you will like it"

Ron lead them to the park entrance before removing the blindfold from Hermione's eyes, watching her face to gauge her reaction. She read the sign before turning to Ron, smiling broadly. "You brought me to a concert!" she cried. Ron looked very indignant. "Not just any old concert; Florence and the Machine. Last I checked you love their music" he said. "Of course I do. Thank you" she said, leaning into him for a hug and kiss, something she never does in public, at least not like this. When she finally let go, Ron reached into his pocket to retrieve the tickets. They entered the park and made their way through the crowd until they found a decent spot. This wasn't their first concert, and Hermione had this down to a science.

Hermione had started playing muggle music to Ron just after they had started dating, saying that the one place Muggles definitely passed wizards was with music. Ron really liked Hermione's taste in music, but he enjoyed watching her reaction to the music way more. Since seeing Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds on their honeymoon, they had been to see quite a few more concerts around the world. They had seen Imagine Dragons in Toronto, Leonard Cohen in Glasgow, Celtic Woman in Dublin, Bon Iver in Amsterdam, Goo Goo Dolls in Rio, Passenger in London, Sia in Hawaii, Foo Fighters in Madrid and Annie Lennox in Tokyo. They had been all over, an Ron quickly learned to take Hermione to these because he loved the way her face lit up. The music was also definitely not bad, and he rather approved of her way of saying thank you.

Hermione was on a high afterwards; she could not stop smiling. The show was absolutely brilliant. The music was so energetic and Florence's voice was so powerful. The people around them danced and cheered, a few even sang along. There was a moment when time seemed to slow down to almost a complete stop, allowing Ron to look over at his wife, dressed in her blue dress, hair in a loose ponytail, jumping up and down to the music in pure joy. Time had been kind enough to let him memorise this moment completely. From the look on her face, illuminated by the stage lights, to the sound of the music and energy around them, to the way Hermione looked at him with her eyes shining brighter than the lights on stage.

When they got home well after midnight that Saturday morning, Ron grabbed the back of her neck and gave Hermione a deep kiss. "Happy birthday 'Mione" he panted against her lips. "I love you" She smiled before pushing him onto the bed to give him a 'proper' thank you.


	28. Chapter 28

**Please review**

Ron rubbed his hand over his face. They had just arrived back at the Burrow after spending one very hot weekend in July camping. They meant Ron, Hermione, Harry, Ginny, Fred, George, Percy, Mr Weasley, Mrs Weasley, Mr Granger and Daniel. The weekend turned out to be rather eventful, although they hadn't really planned it that way.

Sure, they had gone fishing, hiking, canoeing, swimming and obviously played in the mud, but the main event happened on Saturday night, after they had grilled the fish and eaten supper. The big moment came when they were sitting around the fire telling stories.

Fred had just finished the story (which was partly told by every red-head present) about the day they had nearly broken Mrs Weasley. Everybody was laughing, and they were all taking turns telling stories. They had already finished telling the embarrassing ones, and had moved on to the funny ones. Since they were going clockwise around the fire, it was Ginny's turn next. If anybody had been paying any attention to Harry, they might have had some warning. His face was flushed. He knew what was coming.

Ginny cleared her throat, a slight smiling tugging at her lips. "This didn't happen very long ago, I believe it was somewhere around the middle of May.I went to Harry's office during lunch to ask him if he wanted to go out that night. We talked a bit and somehow found ourselves snogging in the broom cupboard." It was dead-quiet around the fire. Harry was as red as a tomato. "We used a condom, one that was quickly applied because we were running out of time; lunch was almost over. As you can imagine the space was rather limited, and we had to get creative with the positions. Now taking that into account that we were going very fast, with an interesting choice in location and position, it is hardly a surprise that the condom broke. The funny part is that despite the fact that I've been using contraception since the day we got married, and that we are always careful, I still manage to get pregnant, in a broom cupboard, the one and only time the condom breaks." There was absolute silence. Ron became aware of the fact that Hermione was stiff and frozen, and therefore didn't realise that he himself wasn't breathing. They were all staring at Ginny, clueless as to what came next. "Was she kidding?" Ron asked himself.

Then the twins burst out laughing. They were laughing so hard that tears were streaming down their cheeks. "Best announcement ever" George panted, going over to hug his sister. Fred whispered something in Harry's ear, somehow making him blush even deeper. Everybody was laughing now, going over to congratulate them. Hermione had somehow snapped herself out of it, Ron noticed. She went over and hugged Ginny before excusing herself from the crowd. It wasn't hard to slip away unnoticed with all the excitement.

Ron was standing outside the loo, knocking softly. Mr Granger was standing behind him. He could hear Hermione sniffing through the door. She let them in. Her face was blotchy and her nose and eyes were red. Ron cast a silencing spell on the room before turning to her. "Just let it out" he told her. Hermione started sobbing, each breath racking her body. Ron pulled her into his lap, and her father rubbed her back comfortingly. "I f-feel so s-self-fish" she cried. "Th-they are hav-ving a ba-by, this-s is a b-big momen-nt for them a-and I-I am cry-ying about my-y own pro-oblems." "Hey, you are not selfish. You just weren't expecting that. I had to give myself a metal slap to right myself. It felt like a punch to the gut. It seems unfair that they get pregnant by accident, while we would give anything to be in their position." said Ron. Mr Granger moved closer to his daughter. "I know this is hard, baby girl, they should have thought about how this would affect you. This isn't just something you get over honey" Hermione just curled into a ball and cried harder. Ron wished that he could have been the one to kill Bellatrix, to get even for all the pain she caused.

Later, when Hermione had calmed down, Ron tucked her into bed. He lied behind her with his arm around her waist to make sure she was okay. Ginny approached Mr Granger as he exited the tent. "Are they okay? I noticed that they disappeared a while ago." Ginny sighed and rubbed her face with her hand. "I should've thought about how they would react. I was too excited." she said softly. "They are still in shock, you caught them off guard and this isn't easy for them. They are really happy for you and Harry, they just need time" he answered with a smile.

The next day went on and everything was pretty much back to normal, aside from the fact that Ron, Percy, Fred and George refused to let Ginny do anything, as if they were afraid she might break. Ron's concern, however, was back on Hermione when the wind caused a dust storm, and her asthma started acting up. Ron almost decided to take her to St Mungo's when the wind stopped. While they were unpacking, Ginny stole Hermione and took her to her old room. "I have to apologise for last night. I wasn't thinking. I didn't know that it would upset you, although, thinking back, I don't know how I expected you to react." she said, sitting down on the bed. She took a breath to calm herself, she had spoken rather fast. "What I am trying to say is: I'm sorry." Hermione walked over to the bed and sat down as well, taking Ginny's hand in both of hers. "You don't have to apologise, and despite my reaction last night, I am really happy for you." Ginny sniffed. "Stupid hormones" she mumbled, causing them both to smile. "I hope you realise that this doesn't mean you have to move out. There is more than enough room, and I want you there." Ginny smiled. At Hermione's confused look she continued. "Come on, you are basically a genius. You are great with kids, and it can be rather handy to have a friend that knows everything about everything." she explained in an excited voice. The two girls continued talking for a while. The baby was due in February. Ron and Harry came in a little while later to say that they were finished. Hermione hugged Harry before kissing Ron. "Let's go home"


	29. Chapter 29

**Please review**

Hermione put her hands on her knees, taking a few deep breaths before straightening up to admire the view. She and Ron had decided to hike up one of the mountains near Hogsmeade to watch the sun rise. Of course this turned into a competition; the couple racing each other up the mountain. Ron beat Hermione with less than a second. She reasoned that the only reason he won was because of his long legs, seeing as she was rather fast, and they were both fit.

Ron carried a large rock over for Hermione to sit on. They watched the sky change colour as they sipped some hot cocoa from a flask. On the way down, they stopped by a lake and decided to take a swim. The water was nice and cool compared to the warm sun. The lake bordered the side of the mountain, and there was a small waterfall running down the side of a rock.

The two stood underneath the shower, Ron holding Hermione around the waist, kissing her neck. Suddenly, Hermione spotted something odd in the crevice behind the waterfall. She squeezed herself through a gap to explore, finding a large cave hidden within the rock. Ron followed, and they lit their wands for a better look.

It was clear that somebody had once lived here. Ron spotted drawings on the walls. "Think cave men did this?" he asked, pointing at them. "I doubt it" Hermione said from deeper inside the cave. "seeing as they were made by crayons" she smiled, bending over to pick one up, showing it to Ron. Beneath the dust there were a few rugs and blankets, along with an old doll and broken wand.

"These people must have been hiding from Voldemort during the war." Hermione said as she walked around. "The place is dirty, but these blankets aren't that old. Looks like they left in a hurry" Ron walked over to her, sensing her need for comfort. "I hope they got away" he said, hugging her to him. He kissed the skin beneath her ear. She looked away, sucking in a deep breath. "We should go" she said softly, squeezing herself through the gap.

#*#*#*#*#*

One random October week, the weather in Britain suddenly turned very cold. A cold front had shown up out of nowhere, making jumpers and blankets necessary way earlier than usual. Hermione was huddled up in an armchair next to the fireplace. It was getting late, the old grandfather clock in the hall was getting ready to ring in the new day.

That was where Ron found her, curled up beneath a blanket with a rather small book by Hermione-standards in her lap. He walked over and sat on the edge of the seat. "It's getting late, you should go to bed soon" he said softly. Hermione shook her head in a rather childish manner. "Want to finish the book" she yawned. "Na-ah, bed. Now" Ron said, trying to pry the book from her grasp.

Realising that this wasn't going to work, he decided on another tactic. He knew something about his wife that very few others did: Hermione was incredibly ticklish. He subtly moved his left hand to her thigh, waiting until she was distracted before moving his fingers softly over her skin.

Hermione let out a yelp and squirmed under his fingers. Ron moved in to seize the opportunity, using both hands to tickle various parts of her body. He tickled her sides, neck, stomach and thighs, watching her wriggle around like a fish out of water. At some point the book fell to the floor, but Ron didn't stop his attack.

Hermione was desperately trying to turn away, tears streaming down her cheeks with laughter. "Stop. Please." she panted, but her plea fell on deaf ears. "Ronald Weasley!" she tried again, Ron had grabbed both her wrists in one hand and was tickling her with the other.

Luckily, Hermione wasn't daft. She knew Ron was stronger than she was, but there was one thing he wasn't immune to. She pulled herself closer to his face and planted a big kiss on his lips. For a moment Ron froze. The kiss had caught him completely off guard. Then her released her to kiss her back, forgetting what he was previously doing. Hermione pulled back, still out of breath and red in the face, and smiled up at Ron. Then she reached down and picked up her book.


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: I know that the 'poem' Hermione reads is actually song lyrics, but for all intents and purposes let's just pretend that it's a poem. Please review and thank you for reading.**

Ron switched the bathroom light off after his shower. He was wearing his boxers and nothing else. This became habit after Hermione continuously made Ron remove his shirt in his sleep, seeking the comfort of his bare skin. Hermione was already in bed, reading a hard-cover book with a serious look on her face.

"That book must be complicated if it requires so much concentration that you don't even notice your half-naked husband" Ron commented. Hermione simply grunted in response, clearly oblivious to what Ron had just said. "Don't you love me any more? Have you found some other bloke with less freckles?" Ron teased, pretending to sound hurt. This earned him a distracted kiss from his wife.

A few minutes later, Ron noticed a silent tear running down Hermione's cheek. She was still reading, her eyes darting across the page, but her expression had turned sad. Ron moved closer to her, using his thumb to wipe away the tear, cupping her face in his hand. "Do you think I would make a good Auror?" she asked in a soft voice. "No, you would make a brilliant Auror. Why are you crying, 'Mione?"

"I am reading this poetry book, and this one just got to me. It's just beautiful" she answered. "Would you read it to me?" Ron asked. He loved hearing Hermione's voice, especially when she was explaining or reading something to him. Hermione looked at him, searching his eyes for a moment before turning to look at the book, clearing her throat.

 _ _Home by Passenger__

 _ _They say home is where the heart is__

 _ _But my heart is wild and free__

 _ _So am I homeless, or just heartless__

 _ _Did I start this, did it start me__

 _ _They say fear is for the brave__

 _ _For cowards never stare it in the eye__

 _ _So am I fearless to be fearful__

 _ _Does it take courage to learn how to cry__

 _ _So many winding roads__

 _ _So many miles to go__

 _ _They say love is for the loving  
Without love maybe nothing is real  
So am I loveless? Do I just love less?  
Oh since love left I have nothing left to fear__

 _ _So many winding roads__

 _ _So many miles to go__

 _ _When I start feeling sick of it all__

 _ _It helps to remember I'm a brick in the wall__

 _ _It runs down from the hillside to the sea__

 _ _When I start feeling like it's gone too far__

 _ _I lie on my back and stare up at the stars__

 _ _And wonder if they're staring back at me__

 _ _For in that solemn silence__

 _ _Is heard the whisper of every sleeping thing:__

 _ _Look, look at me__

 _ _Come wake me up, for still here I'll be__

At the end, Ron was smiling. He kissed the side of her head, now understanding why she had cried. "It's beautiful" he said. Hermione rested her head on his shoulder. "You really mean that?" she asked. "I really mean that. I loved it, and I don't usually like poetry, so that says something" Ron said. "Why did you want to know if you would make a good Auror?" "I was thinking of applying again. It's been two years, and I am fully healed now. I'm also almost done with the task force" answered Hermione. "And what about spew?" Ron asked. He could actually feel Hermione rolling her eyes. "I can managed ****S.P.E.W.**** on the side. Madame Pomfrey doesn't really need my help either, although I am grateful for the opportunity. I am ready for something new" she said. "Well, you will make the best Auror ever, and you will probably break all the records Harry and I had worked so hard to set." Ron laughed. "If you say that you are ready, then I will support you every step of the way" Hermione gave Ron a tight hug and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you" was all she managed.

Hermione closed the book and turned of the light. She snuggled against Ron, lying on her side so she was facing him. They fell asleep with their legs entwined, Ron's left arm draped over Hermione's waist, and her right hand against his chest, feeling his heart beat beneath her skin.


	31. Chapter 31

**Please review**

The waiting room at St Mungo's was quiet and empty. Hermione sat alone waiting for the healer. The only other person in the room was a receptionist. A cold November wind was blowing outside. Hermione was staring at her hands in her lap. She'd wanted to ask Ron to come with her, but she knew he was very busy at work and decided not to tell him until afterwards. "Mrs Granger-Weasley?" a young nurse asked. Hermione nodded as she stood up. The nurse handed her a gown and showed her where she could change.

The healer that entered the examination room was young with long dirty blonde hair tied in a loose knot. She was a little taller than Hermione and had a warm smile. "Mrs Granger-Weasley, I'm Sarah" she said shaking Hermione's hand. "Call me Hermione" said Hermione, instantly feeling more at ease. She had been really nervous about today.

Sarah took Hermione's blood pressure and weight with her wand before adding something resembling a stethoscope head to the tip of her wand. "Take deep breaths" she instructed as she moved her wand around on Hermione's chest and back. "How's the asthma?" she asked. "A lot better than before. Random scents still trigger it occasionally, but with my inhaler and enough air I can easily keep it under control." Hermione answered. Sarah looked at Hermione's ears, throat and eyes before asking Hermione to lie down.

Placing a sheet over Hermione's lower half, Sarah carefully lifted the gown. She took her wand again and listened intently to Hermione's abdomen. The air felt cold on Hermione's tummy. Her heart started racing. She knew what was coming next, and she knew she wasn't going to like it.

Sarah then placed her hands in the middle of Hermione's abdomen and started palpating it, feeling her liver, spleen, stomach, etc. Hermione's breathing became more shallow, she could taste bile at the back of her throat. This was one of the things she hated most about doctor's visits. Her stomach never stopped hurting, not since the car crash when she was four, and these examinations were uncomfortable. She just wanted it to be over.

As the examination continued, Sarah's hands travelled further down Hermione's stomach. They softly grazed over the scar before coming back to press on it gently. Then they travelled to her pubic bone, palpating the area between Hermione's hips. "How have you been feeling these past few months?" Sarah asked. Hermione explained that the cramping and nausea usually got worse around night-time, but that it was a lot better than just after war. "And the seizures?" "I've only had four this year, which is much less than last year. I think I had at least eight then. I can also feel them coming now, so I have time to inject myself and hopefully prevent them." answered Hermione.

"I need to do a pelvic exam" said Sarah. Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath. This was the part she was nervous about. The last time she had cried in pain, tears rolling down her cheeks. She slowly moved to the end of the bed, placing her legs in the stirrups. She felt so exposed.

Hermione felt a cold gloved hand move around her genital area. "Looks good. I am going to insert the speculum now. Just relax" she heard Sarah say. How could she relax? She felt the metallic duck-bill shaped instrument enter her vagina. She tensed. This didn't feel comfortable at all. After a moment the speculum was removed. Sarah said something, but Hermione's mind wouldn't focus on the words. Then Hermione felt a hand on her lower abdomen, followed by the feeling of two gloved fingers slipping up her vagina and scraping against her cervix. Memories came flooding back; her purple walls, the butterflies, the dark figure, and the pain. She closed her eyes and balled her fists, preparing for what came next.

The pain fogged her mind. She tensed and tried taking deep breaths, pressing all the memories to the back of her mind. A white hot pain spread from her belly to her thighs and back as she bit her lip, but it wasn't real. She could feel Bellatrix laughing at her, for this was Bellatrix's doing. "Hermione, can you hear me?" she heard Sarah ask in the distance. When Hermione opened her eyes the white hospital lights flooded her vision. Sarah was looking down at her with a concerned expression.

Once Hermione's heart rate slowed down enough Sarah asked to do an ultra sound, saying it was necessary given Hermione's history. The gel felt like ice as the wand was moved around over her belly. "You're fine Hermione" Sarah said as she wiped the gel from Hermione's abdomen. "Aside from the tenderness in your lower abdomen there is nothing wrong with you. Everything that was a problem before seems fine now. I would like to run some tests on your blood, but I see no reason why you can't start training to become an Auror, heaven knows you are probably the most qualified twenty year old out there." Hermione was staring at her hands again, waiting for her cue to leave.

After leaving the hospital Hermione apparated to the ministry and walked to Ron and Harry's office. They were both sitting at their desks looking through some files. They looked up when they heard the door open. Hermione was a ghostly white and was shaking. Ron stood up and went to hug her. He looked worried. She buried her face in his chest. Harry stood up and left, giving them some privacy. "I went to see a healer today. It was for the medical evaluation to start the Auror training" she explained. "Why didn't you tell me? I could've gone with you" asked Ron, he knew how much she hated these examinations. "I didn't want to keep you from work" Hermione explained. She felt stupid; the war was over, and it seemed that she was the only one still actively struggling with its consequences. If she would just cut herself some slack she would realise that she was the one that was injured the most, and things could have been a lot worse. "'Mione, you will pass, and you will make one hell of an Auror. Just relax" Ron said, rubbing his hand across her back. "I love you" she said against his chest. "I love you too" Ron said, kissing the top of her head.


	32. Chapter 32

**Please review**

At 00:30 Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione entered Grimmauld Place. They had just returned from the park where they had joined Mr Granger and Daniel in watching the fireworks for New Year's. Ginny yawned and announced that she was going to bed. She was now almost 8 months pregnant, and as Harry had whispered to Ron earlier, it was showing, both physically and emotionally. On the way up, Harry noticed a letter lying on the table in the hall where Kreacher must've put it. "Hermione, here's a letter for you" he said, handing it to her. She thanked him and tucked it into her coat before heading to the kitchen.

In their bedroom, Hermione started undressing, and Ron stared as she rubbed lotion on her skin. He could feel the excitement building up inside him. He truly was the luckiest bloke on earth. Hermione lied down next to him dressed in soft pyjamas and reached for the letter on her night stand. "I believe you have way too much clothes on" Ron teased. "Is that so?" Hermione asked as she opened the envelope, raising an eyebrow. Ron nodded furiously and turned his head to kiss her neck. She smiled and turned her head to read the letter. "You know what else I realised? We haven't even had sex since the year started" said Ron.

Hermione laughed before freezing, sucking in a deep breath. "What's wrong?" Ron asked. "I got in" "Got in where?" Ron asked looking very confused. "Auror training" "Always a tone of surprise" Ron smiled. "Honestly, what did you expect?" She leaned down and kissed him deeply. Within seconds they were having a tongue war, Hermione lying partly on top of Ron. "Are you happy?" he asked against her lips. "I think we have something to celebrate" she answered seductively.

Ron smiled broadly as he reached for his wand to cast a silencing spell. He then reached down and flipped them over, causing her to squeal. She started giggling when Ron tickled her sides, dragging her shirt up with his hands. He then sat up so he was straddling her hips, and with a quick movement pulled her shirt over her head. Looking rather pleased, he leaned down and placed an open-mouthed kiss on her exposed stomach. She could feel his erection against her leg when he trailed kisses from her neck to her collarbone. "I-am-so-proud-of-you" he said in between kisses. She moved her hands across his back, pulling him closer.

A warmth spread through her body from between her legs. She loved Ron with all her heart. Her breaths now came in little bursts through parted lips. He was running his hands up and down her torso, teasing at the bottom of her bra. "If memory serves me correctly-" "Which it usually does" "-it is my turn to be on top" she panted. With a snog, she pressed her right leg into the mattress, pulling him to her and hooking her left foot behind his right knee, effectively rolling them over.

Hermione's hips were digging into Ron's lower abdomen. He placed a deep kiss to the base of her neck. Hermione let out a soft moan, the sound drove Ron insane; he needed her now. "That tactic will come in very handy during training" Ron whispered. With one well practised move he unclasped her bra and moved his left hand to cover her breast, feeling the hardened nipple against his palm. He let out a groan of restraint. His right hand was now at the bas of her skull as he sucked a sensitive spot behind her ear when there was a knock at the door. Hermione dropped her head to Ron's shoulder, and he let out a grunt of displeasure. "You've got to be kidding me" he muttered. "Go away!" he yelled in the direction of the door. "They can't hear you Ron" Hermione laughed. The knock sounded again, this time a little louder.

Ron got up and went to the door while Hermione pulled the covers over herself. He yanked the door open, looking very displeased. Harry was standing in the doorway looking very worried. "Oh, um. Am I interrupting something?" he asked, his eyes darting to the bulge in Ron's boxers. "Clearly" Ron said flatly. "And you better have a good reason for it." Harry cleared his throat, the look of concern returning as he remembered why he had come. "Ginny's having contractions. I'm taking her to St Mungo's"


	33. Chapter 33

**Please review**

It was a peaceful morning. February had just begun and the clock had just announced that is was three a.m. Ron and Hermione were fast asleep, having wonderful dreams. Those dreams were interrupted by rather load and frantic knocking. Ron swore under his breath as Hermione lazily walked over to the door. Behind the door stood Harry, one hand still in the air preparing to knock. Panic was written on his face and he was white as a sheet. Hermione stepped back to allow him inside, sitting down on the edge of the bed. Ron had propped himself up on his elbow next to her, still rubbing his eyes to wake up. "Ginny's in labour, for real this time" Harry blurted out. He started pacing in front of them. "Apparently she's been in labour for quite a while. She kept getting contractions, which she said weren't that bad, and because I apparently panic-" "Wonder what gave her that idea" Ron muttered, earning him a nudge from Hermione. "-she decided not to tell me until her water broke" Harry explained as he continued to walk a hole in the floor. "How dare she?" Hermione smirked, trying her best to hide the sarcasm. "You two are not helping" Harry said, pointing at them. "Has he passed out yet? I want to win the bet" Ginny yelled from upstairs, causing the formerly sleeping couple to burst out laughing.

Once Hermione managed to calm herself she started feeling sorry for Harry. "Take Ginny to the hospital. Use the floo, we will get the family and meet you there. Ginny sounds calm so you should be fine" she said, walking over to the dresser and throwing a pair of jeans onto the bed.

Ron and Hermione showed up at the hospital thirty minutes later, accompanied by Molly, Arthur and Bill. The twins were coming as soon as they arranged with Lee to open the shop for them. A nurse at the reception informed them that Ginny had been admitted and that everything seemed to be going fine, she was rather calm. Harry, on the other hand, kept pacing and asking her if she was okay. "Harry Potter, if you ask me if I am fine one more time, I will castrate you myself!" Ginny's voice echoed from down the hall. The nurse smiled. "Anyway, Mrs Potter has had a very easy pregnancy, and I see no reason why the delivery won't be the same. She is already dilated at three centimetres." she finished.

Everybody, except for the lucky couple, was sitting in the waiting room. The twins joined them a little while ago, and Fleur and Percy were dropping by later. It was almost six o'clock when one very downtrodden Harry entered the room. Ron, who was the most nervous about this, asked if everything was alright and if the baby had come yet. "She kicked me out" was all he received as a reply. Fred handed George three galleons. "You called it" he whispered. Hermione had to fight the urge to laugh as she got up to console her friend with his mother-in-law. "She just needs some space, and you need to calm down, I know you are nervous, but you are getting on her nerves. Give her some time before you go back" she said. "She's almost at 8 centimetres" Harry said. "Then you will have plenty of time to calm down. We all know you are nervous about becoming a father, but you are no use to your wife right now. Ginny's had it easy so far, the hard part is still coming, and when it does, she will need you to be there. You need to be the strong one so she doesn't feel the need to stay calm to keep you grounded/" Molly said, patting his back.

Harry and Ginny had decided to keep the gender a surprise, so that was another thing that formed part of the betting pool. Hermione, Bill, Molly, Fred and Fleur bet on the baby being a boy, whereas Ron, George, Arthur and Percy bet on it being a girl. They were all eager to know who was right. At two o'clock Ginny gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. Hermione stood next to the bed holding baby James. "He's beautiful" she said. "He looks a lot like a potato, doesn't he?" Ron asked. Ginny smacked him on the leg. "Oi, I will have you on nappy duty for a month" she threatened.

After Ginny went to sleep, Harry kept holding his son, just looking at him. Everything was going smoothly, until the first nappy had to be changed. Harry went into the bathroom for his first real challenge as a parent. "He just peed on me!" Harry exclaimed in disgust. Ron and Hermione were snickering just outside the door, being of no help whatsoever. "Bill owes us five galleons, turns out Harry didn't know what he was doing" Ron smiled.


	34. Chapter 34

**Please review**

Tonight was the International Wizard Negotiations meeting. Much like the Muggle UN meetings, representatives from nearly every country would be there. All the witches and wizards were meeting in a secret location in the German countryside. Hermione was extremely nervous. The ministry had decided to give her the chance to make S.P.E.W. official, which meant that she had to pitch her ideas in front of every major wizarding country.

Ron was assigned to Hermione for security, along with an older wizard they knew as Hanks. Hermione had been preparing for months, and Ron has found her asleep in an ocean of papers on multiple occasions. The three of them were waiting in the conference room next to Kingsley's office for him to gather the last of his things before leaving. Hermione was pacing along the length of the table, muttering to herself. Ron was desperately trying to calm her when she came to a sudden halt. "What if I forget what I'm supposed to say?" she asked, her fingers massaging her temples. "You won't forget. I can almost recite that thing in my sleep. Plus, you will have your notes with you" Ron answered in what he hoped was a calming voice. She nodded before resuming her course op and down the room. "What if I'm wearing the wrong outfit?" she asked, her eyes wide with panic. At a loss for what else to do, Ron crushed her to him, holding her still. "Listen to me. You will be fine. You know your speech, you are wearing the right clothes, you will not faint or throw up. You will give your speech and you will be brilliant" he said in a calm voice.

They checked into the hotel near the building they were using for the conference. Ron was sharing a room with Hermione, Hanks was in the room just opposite them, and Kingsley was sleeping just down the hall. After dropping of their stuff, they headed over to the to the Conference Hall to sign in. They were each given a name tag and seat number. There were a lot of people, most of them older. This caused Hermione to panic even more, because this meant that they had a lot more experience. This time Kingsley told her she was being stupid, she had helped take down Voldemort at the age of 17.

During the meeting she could hardly focus on what was being said. She worked herself into such a panic that she needed her inhaler to breathe, and Ron had to slip out to get her some water to calm her nausea.

Then they announced that it was her tuen, Hermione slowly got up, shaking like a leaf. Luckily, all her nerves disappeared once she started talking, her passion and knowledge taking over. After the applause had died down Hermione was on a high. The adrenaline was still coursing through her, making her once again unable to sit still.

Once nearly everyone had thanked and congratulated Hermione, Ron took her out to celebrate. The hard part was over. Tomorrow would include a few negotiations, a local Quidditch game and heading home. Hermione was longing for her own bed.

#*#*#*#*#*#*

Hermione opened her eyes to find that they were level with the grass. There was a road a few feet away, and she could see pieces of shattered glass in her hair and on the ground. Her ears were ringing and the taste of blood filled her mouth. She lifted her spinning head. They were in the countryside, but she had no idea where. She could see Ron's unconscious form lying a short distance from her.

As she got up she bit back a hiss. She was in pain but her head was pounding too much to locate the source. On her way to Ron she spotted an older man. Hanks? She recognised him, but could not place him. He was kneeling down next to Kingsley.

At her touch, Ron slowly opened his eyes. Relief washed over his face as he sat up. "Are you okay? I-" but he stopped himself from saying anything further, grabbing his wife's bloodied arm. "You got splinched" he said, feeling the cold rush over him. Hermione looked down at her arm to see thin streams of blood covering her entire left arm. Ron reached up and touched the right side of her forehead. When he pulled back his hand his fingertips were covered with her blood. "What happened?" she asked sounding very worried. "You don't remember?" Ron asked, his face laced with concern.

Hermione was sitting on the floor, leaning with her back against Ron. Her shirt was drawn up to just beneath her bra. Hanks was hunched down in front of her, dabbing dittany on a deep gash in her right side. The skin instantly started to heal. "She has a mild concussion and several cuts. Her memory should return after she drinks this" he said, handing her a small vile. The contents tasted disgusting, but she could already feel the throbbing receding.

Ron looped his arm around her waist and started explaining what happened. "We were at the Quidditch game after the negotiations this morning when a bunch of people dressed as Death Eaters came walking onto the field. They were targeting Muggle-borns and some of the big wigs. We were busy evacuating everyone and trying to get you out of there when you took a piece of glass to the side. You hit your head as you fell and passed out." "Hanks apparated us out of there just in time. These pieces of broken glass are from a bomb that went off just as we left."said Kingsley as he gestured at the ground.

Half an hour later Hermione's memories returned and her arm was healed. Kingsley and Hanks were busy trying to find out what was going on. "Sir, we need to get out of here. We are sitting ducks in the middle of nowhere" Hanks said to Kingsley. "We can't leave now, we need to go help them." Hermione said getting up. She was looking rather angry. "My job is to protect you, and I can't do it very well out here" Hanks replied. "Their are children back there! Children and elves, people with families. Does that mean nothing to you? We have to go back there" Hermione cried. Her face was red and there was a fire in her eyes. She had made up her mind.

The stadium was in utter chaos. Debris and blood littered the field and stands. Medics were rushing to the wounded, and Aurors were evacuating those that could walk. Screams and cries were ringing out from every direction. There was no sign of the Death Eaters though. Hermione immediately rushed to the wounded to help; her time spent with Madame Pomfrey was paying off. The rest of the group volunteered for search and rescue.

A few hours later people were still being treated and evacuated from the stadium. Hermione wiped the sweat from her forehead with her blood covered arm. It wasn't her blood this time. A little while ago she had noticed that the cut in her side was bleeding again, but being too stubborn to stop or ask for help, she had simply cleaned the blood and stuck a bandage over it. Ron noticed Hermione was looking pale again and swayed when she got up as he came to collect her patient. He was about to bend over to help the wizard she had just treated when Hermione's knees gave in as she fainted. Ron caught her and laid her down on the ground. As he called for a medic, he noticed the blood stain on her side. A medic came rushing over and stabilised Hermione "She needs a hospital" he said.

At the hospital, Ron stood impatiently in the waiting room. When a nurse came to get him he rushed to his wife's bed. She was sleeping, but she was okay. Kingsley came by later to check on her. "Your wife is going to make one hell of an Auror" Ron smiled as he kissed her knuckles.


	35. Chapter 35

**Please review**

Hermione woke to the feeling of a gentle hand shaking her shoulder. Slowly she turned onto her back. "Ron?" she asked in a raspy voice. "What's going on?" Ron was smiling down at her, eyes shining. He reached to tuck a curl behind her ear. "I want to show you something" he said, getting up and handing her her dressing gown. She accepted it and rubbed her eyes as she sat up slowly. "What time is it?" she yawned. "Just past one" answered Ron. He was now reminding her of Daniel on Christmas morning.

Ron led her down the stairs and into the garden. Near a tree was a blanket and some pillows, along with a telescope pointing up at the sky. She turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "There's a lunar eclipse tonight" he shrugged, taking her hand and half dragging her to the blanket. He sat down and pulled her into his lap. "Look" he said, pointing at the moon. A quarter of the full moon was now covered by a dark shadow.

"I thought you might like to see it" Ron said, leaning back against the mountain of pillows. Hermione smiled up at him from her position against his chest. "That was very sweet of you" she said before kissing his neck.

For the next hour they lied beneath the stars, a cool wind blowing over them. Occasionally one of them would sit up and look through the telescope before lying down again. Just after the eclipse was over Hermione heard soft snoring coming from above her head. Ron had fallen asleep on the blanket with his arm draped over her waist.

#*#*#*#*#*

Hermione was sitting on the floor of the study next to the coffee table. Her legs were crossed and she was leaning to the side as she wrote something down in her notebook. Ron had just taken a shower after his run with Harry. "Still at it?' he asked as he leaned in to kiss her hair. She nodded. She had spent the entire morning in the study taking notes for S.P.E.W.

"Have you eaten yet?" Ron asked, sitting down on the sofa behind her. "I'll grab some breakfast in a minute" she answered, rolling her neck to get the kinks out. "Breakfast? Mione, it's almost one o'clock!" Ron exclaimed. "You haven't eaten all day? You must be starving" he said in concern. "I was busy" she said. As if on cue, Hermione's stomach growled. "See, your stomach agrees with me" he smiled. Hermione rolled her eyes but smiled anyway. "Just let me finish the chapter" she begged.

While he waited, Ron slid down to sit behind her. "I'll try and keep your stomach company till then" he grinned. He slid his hands around her waist and beneath her shirt, letting them rest on her tummy. He thought he had a rather excellent excuse for touching his wife, aside from the fact that he had married her.

Later that night, Hermione entered their bedroom to find Ron putting away some of their laundry. She was kneading her neck with her right hand. "You okay?" Ron asked, shutting the top drawer. "Mm, yeah. Just a bit sore" she replied. "There's a surprise" he said, walking over to her. "You just spent the entire day sitting on the floor hunched over a coffee table"

At Hermione's sigh, Ron led her to the bathroom. Sitting her down on the toilet, he quickly ran a hot bath. They got in and Ron positioned her between his legs so that she was comfortable but he could still reach her entire back. "Where does it hurt?" he asked gently, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Everywhere?" she shrugged. "But Ron, I'm fine. I can take a potion for it, you don't have to do anything" she added, trying to turn around. "Are you kidding? I enjoy the excuse to touch you just as much as you enjoy the massage" he said, running his fingers over her sore muscles. She relaxed, leaning into his touch. "You don't need an excuse for that" she sighed.

#*#*#*#*#*

It was early in the morning. The birds and sun were both still sleeping. Ron was sleeping on his back, his legs entwined with Hermione's, and his left arm resting on her shoulders. Her face was nestled against his chest and she was lying slightly on top of him with her left hand on his right shoulder. They were both sleeping peacefully, something they had discovered was a privilege since James was born.

Hermione started muttering in her sleep, something she often did, and Ron pulled her closer. Then she started moaning, her breathing suddenly shallow and laboured. Ron could feel her heart racing against his bare chest and sat up quickly. He hoped she wasn't having another seizure. She had had one just over a month ago. In the dim moonlight he could see her frowning. He released a breath he didn't know he was holding with relief.

She was now lying on his stomach, her head rising and falling with each of his breaths. She was having a nightmare. This wasn't uncommon, they've all been having them since the start of the war. In the past few years both Ron and Hermione have woken up to the other one crying, and held them until they fell asleep again. The worst was when they woke up to the other one screaming, for they knew what the nightmare was about, and that it was more a memory than a nightmare. Ron would wake up to Hermione screaming and pleading "Please stop" to a now dead Bellatrix, and she would wake to him screaming her name from a cellar he was no longer in.

This nightmare was different though. She wasn't screaming or tossing around, she was just turning her head around as silent tears ran down her face. Sweat covered her face and chest, matting her hair to her forehead and cheeks. She looked scared and confused, and suddenly very small. "I won't tell. Please stop, it hurts. Please" she pleaded in a high, small voice. Ron started talking to her, gently trying to wake her. He knew which nightmare she was having now, and he was afraid to touch her, lest he made it worse. This was the nightmare of a reality four-year-old Hermione had to live through in her purple butterfly bedroom on the nights she slept at her mother's house and her stepfather got drunk.

Her hands were curled into fists that seemed to small to be her own. She had turned onto her left side and had pulled her legs up and together, protecting her aching tummy. Ron jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. He knew from experience that shaking her or touching her gently only added fuel to the fire. He needed to wake her up, and the only way to do that was with water. He filled the glass on the sink and held a cloth beneath the open tap before returning to the bed. Gently he poured some water over her cheeks and forehead, then he moved down to her neck, chest and arms. He could see her starting to come to. Her eyes moved beneath her eyelids and her breathing started to slow. She wasn't rolling her head around or muttering any more. "'Mione, honey, can you hear me?" he asked gently. "'Mione, it's just a dream, hun. Come on, wake up" he said in a low voice. Slowly her red eyes opened. Her chocolate orbs stared into the distance before focusing on him. He could see realisation dawn on her. She was safe. It was all over.

"Ron?' she asked groggily. He wiped the cloth over her face and neck. Her eyes filled with tears and she crossed her arms over her stomach. Ron saw this and pulled himself up to sit next to her. "Does it hurt?" he asked, placing a hand on her arms. She nodded, closing her eyes. "It was so real" she cried. Ron's heart broke. To him, Hermione was the greatest gift anyone could ever receive. He often felt that he wasn't worthy of her, and yet her stepfather was too blind to see what a blessing she was. Ron's blood boiled every time he thought of that man. How could anyone treat sweet, innocent Hermione that way? How did her pleas not break that man's heart?

Ron softly pulled her into his lap and hugged her to him. "It's okay, you're safe now" he whispered, moving his hand comfortingly across her back. She was sobbing into his chest, taking deep, shaky breaths as the tears streamed down her face. After a while her head started pounding from all the crying. Ron was whispering softly to her, trying to calm her down. "I c-can't st-top"she sniffed. Ron leaned across the bed and opened the drawer of his night stand. He reached inside and closed his hand around a circular vile and spoon. Closing the drawer, he sat back up and pored some of the deep blue liquid into the spoon. Hermione leaned forward and drank the potion before leaning back against Ron. The potion was one Molly started brewing after the war to help with the nightmares that plagued everyone's sleep. It was a mixture of a sleeping draught and dreamless sleep.

After a few minutes Hermione's breaths evened out and the crying started to slow. Ron moved down lower so he was lying on his back. They were now back in the position they had started with. It took a short while before Hermione's eyes slipped closed and she was asleep once more.

#*#*#*#*#*#*

Living in Grimmauld Place over the past few months had proven one thing: Silencing Charms didn't work for babies. The inhabitants of this house had learned this the hard way. Ron wouldn't have minded if this only affected the parents of the banshee, but sadly, said parents lived just one floor above his bedroom. And James WOULD NOT stop crying.

No amount of charms or pillows could shut out the noise, and no potion seemed to calm the child. Nobody was spared. Even Kreacher's sleep was interrupted. The past few weeks have been hell, but tonight was by far the worst. In the beginning, James would cry softly when he was hungry or needed something, but by middle May he started growing more restless. Ginny suspected that he was teething, but nothing would make him stop crying.

After lying awake for two hours listening to the wailing, Hermione had one hell of a headache. The room was hot because it was mid July, and Hermione hadn't been feeling to well the past couple of days. It wasn't anything serious, she explained to Ron, she just has headaches and stomach cramps, and she was feeling rather tired.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She got up and walked to the door. "Where are you going?" Ron whispered. "To stop this bloody crying before I kill your godson." she said as she walked out the door. Ron was now slightly worried. He knew his wife would never to anything irrational, but how was she planning on stopping the noise? He was tempted to follow her, but decided that he was safer staying in bed.

Hermione walked up the stairs and knocked loudly on Harry's bedroom door. She heard a voice before the door opened. "I'm sorry about the noise, but nothing seems to be working" a flustered Harry apologised. She simply pushed past him. On the bed Ginny sat holding James. Hermione could tell she had been crying, and she seemed exhausted. Hermione simply walked up to Ginny and help out her arms. "Let me try" she said, at Ginny's confused look she added "It won't hurt, doesn't look like you're achieving anything, and you could use a break."

With a still crying James in her arms, Hermione walked down the stairs to the living room. She took her wand from her pocket and lit a few candles. Following some unknown urge she assumed was maternal instinct, she picked up her book from the end table next to the sofa and lied down with baby James still wailing on her chest. She could feel his little tears on her bare skin. "Amateur" she smiled.

She opened her book and began reading out loud. She knew her throat would be sore in the morning, but if this helped with the noise it would be worth it. By the time she reached the third page James started calming down. He was no longer screaming, he was now only whimpering. Hermione was rather surprised that she had been so calm when she went to fetch James, and was even more surprised that this was actually working. She continued reading until he was soundly asleep on her chest. His back was peacefully rising and falling with each breath. By now Hermione had read a full two chapters. Once she was sure that he was asleep, she stopped reading and closed the book. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, enjoying the silence.

She could hear soft footsteps padding down the stairs. A mop of red hair came into view over the back of the sofa. "Is he still alive? Ginny was too afraid to see what you did" Ron whispered. "He is sleeping, if you wake him I will kill you" Hermione responded. "What did you do?" Ron asked. "I read to him" "So you bored him to sleep? Excellent plan" he teased. She glared at him. "But honestly though, how did you know that would work?" he inquired. "I don't know" she shrugged. "Maternal instinct?"

Ginny stuck her head around the door. "Is he still alive?" she asked her brother. He nodded, putting a finger to his lips. Ginny slowly walked into the room, smiling when she saw her son sound asleep on her best friend's chest. "You really are the brightest witch of your age"


	36. Chapter 36

**Please review**

Ron was very worried about Hermione. She almost never got sick, and if she did it was never for long. But she's had stomach bug for over a month now. She usually got cramps and nausea without being sick, but lately she's been very tired and frequently got head-rushes and headaches. Ron has been trying to get her to go see a healer, but she is stubborn. She kept insisting that she was fine, and that she couldn't afford to take time off from Auror training.

Ron came home on Friday to find Hermione fast asleep on the bed. He kissed her head and covered her with a blanket, staying a moment longer to watch her sleep. He returned an hour later with some tea and toast. He rubbed her back and spoke to her in a low voice until her eyes opened. "Hey, I brought you some tea" he said as he nodded in the direction of the cup. "Mmm, thanks" she said groggily, pulling herself up to lean against the headboard. "'Mione, please go see a healer. This isn't normal" Ron pleaded. He was softly stroking her knee with his thumb. "I'll try to go over the weekend" she promised. "I'm helping out at the shop tomorrow, but I can arrange to go with you" Ron explained. Hermione shook her head. "It's just a stomach bug. I'll be fine" she assured him, running a hand through his hair.

The next day Hermione entered Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, scanning the store for Ron. "I need to talk to you" she said once she found him. He nodded and took her hand, leading them into a storage room at the back. She closed the door and Ron sat down on one of the boxes, patting the space next to him. Hermione declined, and he stared up at her to search her eyes.

"I went to see a healer" she said shyly. Her face remained expressionless, but from her eyes he could tell that she had been crying. "And?" was all he asked. He was trying to prepare himself for her answer. She took a small step forward and took his left hand in her right one. Carefully she slipped their hands beneath the fabric of her shirt, flattening them on her stomach just below her belly button. Ron's wide eyes flew to hers, understanding what she meant, but willing her to say it anyway in case he misunderstood.

"I'm pregnant" she whispered. That was all Ron needed. He jumped up and pulled her into a delicate embrace, trying to match their breathing patterns so that he exhaled when he inhaled to avoid putting any pressure on her tummy. "So why were you crying?" he asked tentatively into her hair. She sighed and and dug her head further into his chest. "I'm still shocked" she replied. "I never even allowed myself to imagine the possibility of having a baby. The healer said that this is a miracle. There's never been someone who has survived both the Infertility Curse and the Cruciatus Curse to the extent that I have, let alone be sane enough to get pregnant afterwards" she murmured against his chest. This made Ron's heart swell with pride. His wife was so much stronger than she let herself believe; her mere existence was evidence of the fact.

Ron was starting to get dizzy from his new breathing pattern, but he daren't change it. What he had thought was impossible had just happened, and he'd be damned if was going to risk it. Luckily, Hermione had caught on to what he was doing. "You can breathe normally, Ron. Our stomachs touching won't do anything" she said, her voice muffled by his shirt. He lowered one of his hands, letting it slide down her side, and stopped at her hip, gently slipping his thumb onto the skin that was now covering their child.

"How far along are you?" asked Ron after having pulled back far enough to look at her. "About ten weeks" she answered. Ron's ears turned red. "That means-" "The night Charlie came to visit in June" Hermione finished with a flushed face. Ron smiled-he was over the moon. At that moment George knocked on the door. "Everything alright in there?" he asked through the door. "We're fine, we'll be right out" Hermione called back. She turned to face her husband again. "I'm tired, I'll see you at home. Please don't tell anyone yet; I want to tell them at lunch tomorrow." Ron smiled. "Will you get home okay?" he asked. "I can still apparate, Ron. I'm pregnant, not an invalid" she teased. She gave him a quick kiss. "Don't worry, I can take care of us" she smiled. He placed his hand on her stomach one last time before letting her go.


	37. Chapter 37

**Please review**

Telling the family went a lot different from the original plan. At lunch, Ron found himself having to fight for the right to speak. When everybody was finally silent, the couple suddenly found themselves speechless. The just sat there having an eyebrow conversation.

"Out with it! I am exhausted and I will have no problem prying it out of you two if you don't hurry up" Ginny said in mock frustration. The two continued staring at one another. The twins weren't exactly helping. They kept making comments to add to the pressure. "Shut up!" Mrs Weasley yelled. "Can't you see they are trying to tell us that they are pregnant?" She fell silent the moment she realised what she had done. Ron's ears were burning red. Hermione was traring down at her plate, feeling like a giant weight has been lifted off her shoulders. "Is this true?" Mr Weasley asked. Ron nodded.

Suddenly everybody started talking, getting up to hug and congratulate the couple. Hermione started to find it hard to breathe, overwhelmed by all the people. Unable to handle the claustrophobia any longer, she apparated onto the stairs and ran up to Ron's room. Ron tried to follow her, but Molly stopped him before going up herself. "This needs a mother's touch" she said.

Mrs Weasley found Hermione sitting on the bed with her inhaler in her hand. "Can I come in?" Mrs Weasley asked. Hermione nodded. Mrs Weasley sat down opposite Hermione, placing a comforting hand on her knee. "Are you okay, dear?" she asked. "I just got overwhelmed by all the people" Hermione answered. "How did you know I was pregnant? It wasn't even supposed to be possible" "I saw the way Ron acted around you. He's more protective than usual." Mrs Weasley answered.

Ginny knocked and entered the room with a cup of tea. She sat down next to Hermione and gave her shoulder a squeeze. "I'm sorry about my barbaric brothers, they just got very excited. We just didn't think it would happen" she apologised. "They are probably also upset about not having a betting pool" Hermione smiled. "Oh, don't you worry. They are taking care of that right now. Your puppy is also wandering around looking very lost downstairs" Ginny laughed. "Yeah, he's been very…attentive. He is always there, it's getting kind of annoying actually, and it's only been 24 hours. Don't get me wrong, he's very sweet, I just feel like I need brake lights when I stop so he won't bump into me. I love him to death and he's been very helpful, especially when I get dizzy." Hermione explained. "Could you maybe just explain to him that I won't break? It's not necessary for him to walk me everywhere all the time" she asked Mrs Weasley. "I can try, but he's acting exactly like his father did when I was pregnant with Ginny. He did things like rub my feet without me asking and kept hovering around me. He knows this won't be an easy pregnancy and he's just trying to be helpful." "Copycat" Ginny teased.

#*#*#*#*#*#*

Later that afternoon, Ron and Hermione were sitting on her father's couch. Hermione looked tired and was leaning against Ron's shoulder. She had just told her father the big news, and he was smiling broadly. He walked over to the couch and slowly sat down next to her, giving her a gentle hug. He knew what his daughter was feeling, he could sense her worry. "I know you are probably still in shock, and I know you are worried about what comes next, but congratulations" he said, stroking her hair. Hermione gave him a small smile, her eyes welling up with tears. Her father could always tell how she felt, and was always very supportive.

Her father talked to them for a while, trying to calm their fears and understand the situation better. "What about your seizures?" he asked. Although Hermione didn't have them that often any more, they still weren't completely gone. She explained that the seizures were caused by magic, which basically knocked her out for a few minutes and made her muscles contract, but she still had enough oxygen. The healers put a protective spell on her and the baby to prevent early labour as a precaution. She could also tell when she was about to have one which meant that she could avoid falling. She also explained that her body would only be able to handle one pregnancy, even if she did manage to get pregnant again.

While Hermione went to go tell Daniel, Mr Granger gave Ron a pregnancy book. "That thing is a lifesaver" he said, pointing at the book. "It gives detailed descriptions and short summaries of what to expect for new fathers. I practically lived by that guide when we were expecting Hermione" Ron thanked him, saying that he will follow it carefully. "I know she acts like she's fine, but she's scared. This won't be easy for her, and she will probably not want to ask for help, so just be there for her. Even if she chases you away. Just give her some space and then go back to her. Take care of my little girl, please" Mr Granger begged.

Hermione entered the room with a very excited Daniel. The kid couldn't wait to become an uncle. He kept asking questions about how big the baby was and how long he had to wait to meet the baby.


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: Sorry about the confusing updating pattern, but I've gone back and fixed a few mistakes. If you have any sweet pregnancy moment prompts you would like to submit you can PM me or leave it in the reviews. I'm sorry if I do not use yours, but I feel it is more disrespectful if I write something just for the sake of writing rather than actually having an idea and inspiration for the prompt (or if the idea doesn't fit in with this storyline I might post it as a oneshot, in which case any Romione or Hermione and her father moment would do).**

 **Sorry for the long note. Enjoy and please review.**

It was a few days after the couple had told their parents that they were expecting. Hermione opened her eyes to find that Ron wasn't in bed next to her. Instead, he entered the room carrying a plastic bag and a ridiculously large piece of cardboard. "Ron, what are you doing?" Hermione asked sleepily. "You're up" he said with a kiss. "Good morning. I repeat: what are you doing?" she answered.

Ron dove into a very excited explanation. Since Hermione would only be pregnant once, Ron wanted them to be able to remember everything. He was going to stick the cardboard to the wall and draw squares along the upper and right-hand sides of it. There would be one square for each remaining week of her pregnancy. In each square he would write down the baby's development, Hermione's symptoms, and any other notes about the pregnancy (such as cravings and sleeping positions, as he explained very animatedly). Next to the notes, Ron would paste a picture of the type of fruit or vegetable that matched the baby in size. In the remaining space he decided to mark Hermione's growing belly. He bought 8 different coloured 'safe' markers that he would recycle every eight weeks. After tracing the size and shape of her bump, he would write down the date and exact measurements.

"And you came up with all that last night?" Hermione asked incredulously. Ron nodded, looking quite pleased. "I don't want to forget a single thing. We can hang it in the nursery once the baby comes" Ron explained with a grin. "Hopefully I won't need all the open space on that cardboard" Hermione laughed. "Want to make the first entry?" Ron asked eagerly, ignoring her comment in all the excitement.

After taping the cardboard to the wall at a comfortable height, Ron led a shirtless Hermione over to the wall. She stood with her left side against the wall as Ron carefully used the red marker to trace her silhouette on the paper. He then produced a roll of measuring tape from the plastic bag as well. "May I?" he asked. "Did you cast an undetectable expansion spell on that thing? What else have you got in there?" Hermione asked, pointing at the bag.

Ron wrote down the date and Hermione's current size down next to the thin red line. "58.4 centimetres, not bad" he teased. She wrapped her arms around his middle and squeezed tightly. "Thank you, Ron" she said softly, a single tear making its way down her cheek. "I love you" he whispered.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

Ron came home one night to find his 14-weeks pregnant wife hunched over the loo. Her knuckles were a ghostly white as she held on for dear life. Dumping her stomach contents into the bowl, she groaned a greeting.

Ron moved to gather her hair in his hands, securing it in a loose ponytail with an elastic he found on the sink. He hunched down next to her and rubbed gentle circles on her back. This was sadly hardly the first time he had seen her vomit, but at least this time he knew what was causing it.

Hermione's body refused to believe that there was nothing left to throw up, making her dry heave for several moments before allowing her to sink down into her husband's lap. While she was dry heaving, she felt like her back was about to break. She could feel her empty stomach pulling together in a feeble attempt to produce something to get rid of. Her eyes were watering, her head was spinning and her entire body was aching. She welcomed the feeling of the cold floor against her clammy skin.

Ron used a damp cloth to wipe her forehead. "I was going to ask how you were feeling, but I think I can guess" he said, helping her sit up slowly. "Ugh" she groaned, wiping her eyes with her wrist. "Have you been able to keep anything down today?" "Not since breakfast" Hermione answered. Since finding out she was pregnant, Hermione was forced to quit all practical Auror training and went back to helping Madame Pomfrey at Hogwarts three days a week. The morning sickness and stomach cramps have intensified over the past few weeks, and Hermione was almost permanently tired.

"I don't even know why they bother calling it 'morning sickness' when I am basically sick the entire day" Hermione complained. With her medical history, it was hard to find a moment in the past few weeks where Hermione hadn't been nauseous. "I'm sorry" Ron said as he pulled her to her feet. "What for?" Hermione asked, sitting down on the bed. "I feel I've made a rather large contribution to your current situation" Ron explained. "Do you need anything?" he asked. "Just sleep, although I won't say no to you rubbing my back as I fall asleep" she smiled tiredly. "Done"

Hermione crawled into bed, lying down on her stomach, a position she discovered she rather fancied over the past few years. Ron sat down next to her and slowly ran his hands over her back until her breathing evened out.


	39. Chapter 39

**Please review and keep those prompts coming.**

It was very hot day for late October. Hermione had the day off and decided to spend it reading in the study next to an open window. Every now and then she subconsciously moved her hand to rest on her still flat belly. She was now almost fourteen weeks along, but was still getting used to the fact that she was going to become a mother.

In the hall she could hear soft paws walking on the wooden floor. Ila let out a little meow to call for Hermione. "In here baby" she called. A few seconds later the white and ginger cat came walking through the door. She might be one year old now, but she was still Hermione's baby. Ila wasn't daft though. She knew she was soon going to have to share her mummy.

Just after Hermione found out she was pregnant, Ila refused to let her anywhere near her litter box. "I think she's trying to protect you. Your dad's book said that pregnant women should avoid cat litter. Apparently it can carry some sort of parasite" Ron explained. Hermione felt rather stupid that she had forgotten that fact. Ila was also a lot more protective of her mummy in the past few weeks. If Ron wasn't following her around, Ila was.

Right now Ila was standing next to the sofa, preparing to jump on, but instead of jumping onto Hermione's stomach like she always does, she jumped on at her legs.

Ila made her way to Hermione's side and curled up next to her. "It's okay Ila, you can still lie on top of me" she said to the cat. Seeing that she didn't understand, Hermione picked her up and placed her just below her ribs. Hermione laughed at the cat's surprised look. Ila basically shook her head before getting up and climbing off. Why didn't her human understand? She knew there was another baby, she was fine with there being another baby, she didn't want to hurt the other baby. Hermione's torso was off limits for a while.

Downstairs the front door shut. Ron was home. Since finding out that Hermione was expecting, he had made a habit of going to see her in his lunch breaks. It wasn't that he thought she couldn't take care of herself, he just wanted to make sure she was okay and didn't need his help. "Mione?" he called. "I'm in the study"

Ron's hair shone in the sun as he bent down to kiss her. "I think Ila's mad at me. Look at this" she said, picking Ila up again to place her on her chest. Once again Ila got up and climbed off. "See, she's mad at me." Ron laughed at his wife's offended she could, Ila would've rolled her eyes at Hermione. For someone so smart she could be really thick. She wasn't mad at her mummy, she was simply protecting her. Looks like she was going to have to spell it out for her.

"Honey, if she was mad at you she wouldn't be lying next to you" Ron stated, sitting down next to her. He placed his big hand on her tummy and kissed her nose. Ila saw this and thought this was a good idea. Raising her tiny paw, she placed it softly on Hermione's stomach. Ron smiled. "I think she's trying to tell you she's okay with you being pregnant." Hermione scratched the feline's head and drew her shirt up to above her belly button. Ila responded by rubbing her head against the newly exposed skin and giving a soft purr.

"Why is it that every cat you own seems to have above cat-average intelligence?" Ron asked with a smile. Hermione rolled her eyes as she pet Ila's head.


	40. Chapter 40

****A/N: This is for all the amazing fathers out there. They don't get nearly enough credit. My prompts was 'a father is his daughter's first love'. This is my 40**** ** **th**** ** **chapter and I am so happy. Thank you to everyone for sticking by me. Enjoy and please review.****

 ** **PS. I know I can't really do all those unspoken acts of love justice, but I had to try.****

Mr Granger held the little gate open, allowing Hermione to enter first. They were in a small park near Grimmauld's, and for once Daniel wasn't with them. He was having a play date with Mrs Weasley and James. Ron was at work, but Hermione had the day off and her father had called her to ask if she wanted to go out for a bit.

There were a few children and their parents in the park, but they were all over by the slides and jungle gym, leaving the swing set open. Mr Granger sat down, and Hermione did the same, using her feet to move slightly back and forth. She stared down at her shoes.

"How are feeling today?" her father asked. "Little tired and achy, but the morning sickness is getting better" she answered. She loved her father and doing things with him, but today she just wasn't feeling like herself. That was probably why she agreed to go out with him. "I'm still not showing" Hermione added. "Don't worry, fifteen weeks is still early. Your mother only started showing at seventeen weeks" Mr Granger replied.

"Dad, have you told mum I'm pregnant?" Hermione asked her father in a small voice. "No honey, why?" he asked. "I haven't either. I know I should, she is my mother, but I just can't bring myself to do it, not while she's still with ****him****. I feel guilty but she's never really been there for me." Hermione's voice was shaky and almost inaudible as she said this.

"Hermione, she hurt you. She wasn't there when you needed her and she chose him over you. It's perfectly understandable that you don't want to tell her that you're having a baby. It's your choice to make, honey" Mr Granger said, placing a loving hand on her knee. "What if she doesn't forgive me?" her eyes were now welling up. She hated disappointing people. "Then that is her loss. She put herself in the position where her own daughter doesn't want to talk to her. You did nothing wrong Hermione" Mr Granger said firmly.

"I just don't get why she stays with him. She knows he doesn't love her" Hermione sighed. "Mione, did you read Perks of Being a Wallflower?" her father asked. She nodded. "Of course. You gave it to me on my 15th birthday and I finished it the next day." "Then you should remember the part about people accepting the love they think they deserve. Even you and Ron believe that you are receiving more than you are worth, which is a total lie." Mr Granger explained.

The pair sat in silence for a while. "I remember taking you to a park similar to this one when you were still a child. It had a swing, a slide, a roundabout, and a jungle gym, but you never wanted to play on them. You only wanted to sit near the little pond and watch the fish and the birds. You loved sitting there, watching as they go about their lives, asking me what type of bird or fish it was." Mr Granger smiled. "And what did you say when I asked you?" asked Hermione. "Well, you know that I am rather rubbish at naming animals, so half the time I just made them up. " her father shrugged. "You did not" Hermione said, looking shocked, but her eyes were smiling. "I did. You were quite impressed. Went about telling everyone how your dad can name almost any bird, including the rare Red Chested Flyhopper" Hermione's face flushed. "Turns out it was just a common robin, but not according to you." Mr Granger laughed. Hermione joined in, but her cheeks were still bright red.

"Are you hungry? Let's go get something to eat" said Mr Granger, getting up. "You will always be my baby girl" he added with a smile, gently pushing his daughter's swing. She turned her head to smile at him. He did it again, and again, each time making her go just a little bit higher. "Higher daddy, higher" Hermione exclaimed in a gleeful, childish voice. They attracted quite a bit of attention. The children laughed, but the parents smiled at the site of a man pushing his grown-up daughter on a swing in the park.

After having a light lunch at a restaurant. Mr Granger whispered something in the steward's ear. A moment later a song softly started playing, causing Hermione to smile. Mr Granger got up and offered his hand to her as Beauty and the Beast played in the background. "May I have this dance?" he asked. "People will stare" she answered. "Let them stare. All they will see is a proud father dancing with his daughter. I almost lost you without knowing it, I'm not taking that chance again"

He led her to a open space near the side of the restaurant. "I haven's waltzed in ages. I don't even know if I still can" Hermione smiled nervously. "Then stand on my feet" her father said. She looked up at him, and realising that he was serious, put her feet on his. They danced this way until the second verse, when Hermione felt confident enough to dance on her own.

An old couple sat staring at them, but Hermione didn't even noticed. She was trapped in the moment, her six year old self coming out to play. She knew that as a child she used to drive her father nuts begging him to teach her how to dance to this song. But her father was always patient, he taught her how to waltz, especially to this song. Her eyes started welling up again. Her father was smiling down at her, and only now did she fully realise how much he truly meant to her, how scared she was of losing him. Her father has always been there for her, and she knew that he was her first love, and that she was his princess. "What's wrong?" he asked. The song was about to end and they were slowing down. Over her shoulder he could spot the old man wiping away a tear and nodding in his direction. A sign of a job well done, he assumed. Hermione looked up and shook her head. "Just the bloody hormones" she lied.


	41. Chapter 41

**Please review**

Mr Granger was a great gift-giver. For Christmas he had given his daughter dark brown block-out curtains. He had given her this with the hopes that the lack of sunlight in the room would allow her to actually sleep in or take an afternoon nap once in a while. That was precisely what she and Ron were doing. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and they were both fast asleep.

Ron had convinced Hermione to lie down for a kip, seeing as she was now 16 weeks along and extremely tired. He was planning on waiting until she fell asleep before leaving to join Harry in the living room, but after watching her sleep for a few minutes he felt his eyelids slip closed.

He was still lying peacefully on his back when his wife suddenly bolted upright, her hands on her tummy. Her face grimaced at the slight pain emanating from beneath her hands. She sat still for a minute looking down at her stomach before she realised what was going on.

"Ron" she said, nudging him a bit. He didn't stir. "Ronald, wake up" she said, a little louder this time. Ron woke up with a start and propped himself up on his left elbow, facing her. "You okay?" he asked in a raspy voice. Hermione smiled and leaned back against the headboard. Her eyes had started filling with tears.

"I can feel it moving" she whispered. Ron's eyes went wide. He moved so that his shoulder was pressing against the headboard and his right hand slipped in between her shirt and belly, letting it rest between her hips. Hermione still wasn't showing yet, but he could feel a firm rounding beneath her skin.

"It will be a few weeks before you'll be able to feel anything" she smiled, tears running down her face. "That's okay, you deserve some alone time with the baby" Ron smiled. Right now his face was lit up like a Christmas tree. He was smiling so broadly you would swear he had just discovered magic for the first time. He was over the moon. "You happy daddy?" Hermione asked smiling through the tears. "You have no idea" Ron said, placing a bunch of soft kisses on her tummy. This was a hundred times better than hearing the baby's heart beat in the healer's office last week.

Ron sat there for nearly five minutes in complete silence, his hand covered by hers still resting between her hips. He kept looking at her stomach as if he expected a message from the baby. "What does it feel like?" he asked, finally moving to rest his head on her shoulder. "Like butterflies flying around inside me" she smiled.

"Does it hurt?" he asked, suddenly concerned. He remembered a sixteen year old Hermione lying on Ginny's bed bleeding from the Infertility Curse. He remembered his mother saying this was the worst case she had ever heard of, that the curse had sliced through Hermione's uterus and down to her vagina. He remembered how she cried, knowing she would never be able to get pregnant. How her face contorted with pain each time she had to get up the following weeks. How she had locked herself up in the loo of the tent when they were on the hunt the first time she had gotten her period again. He remembered it all, and the last thing he wanted was for their child, the one they thought they would never have, to remind her of all of that.

"Just a bit, the healer warned me about it, but it's a lot better than I expected. I can tell that the baby is kicking right on the wound though" she replied. "I'm so sorry" was all Ron could say. He pulled her into a hug. How long after the war would his wife still have to suffer? He couldn't even shag her without her being in pain. She said it was just a little uncomfortable, but he could tell that it was more than that. It hurt.

"Hey, stop that. Stop apologising. We are having a baby. I would take the pain any day to know that it is alive and healthy" Hermione said, planting a kiss on the top of his head. "I love you" he replied.


	42. Chapter 42

**Please review**

Ron entered the room after his shower, and immediately wished he hadn't. His pregnant wife was standing in front of a mirror. No amount of Auror training could prepare him for that one question, the one that was the leading cause of death amongst men. Nobody was safe from those four words: Do I look fat? Ron's heart was pounding in his ears. That was why he nearly collapsed when she actually noticed him.

If he had been paying any attention to her face though, he would have known he was safe. Hermione was standing shirtless in front of the mirror, looking intently at her belly. She spotted Ron in her peripheral vision. He was sweating and looking rather worried. "You okay?" she asked. He nodded and swallowed, preparing himself.

"Come here" she said, gesturing with her head, hands firmly planted on her hips. Here it comes; the question. Ron walked slowly to the execution chair. She took his hands in hers and placed them on her sides. They were looking sideways at the mirror. "I think I'm starting to show" she said, smiling up at him. "What?" Ron said, shocked. He must have heard her wrong. No way he was that lucky.

"Ron, are you sure you're alright?" Hermione asked, tilting her head to the side. "Yeah, sorry. You said you're showing?" Ron said rather awkwardly. She nodded, flashing him a smile. "What did you expect me to say?" Oh shit. "Um, I thought you were going to ask me if you looked fat?" Ron said, each word coming out faster and higher. Hermione was now 18 weeks along and so far the only emotional outbursts she had had was spontaneous crying or laughing, but he had seen Ginny nearly castrate Harry for handing her the wrong eating utensil while pregnant, and he wasn't going to let his guard down. "Well, do I?" Hermione asked him, a slight smile tugging at her lips. Could he get any luckier? "Not at all. I mean you are barely starting to show. Any weight you put on now is for the pregnancy, so it doesn't count as being fat, and the healer said you are slightly underweight. You look beautiful" Ron prayed that this answer was the correct one.

He assumed that the universe had once again spared him, because his wife simply kissed him on the lips. He looped his hands behind her back and deepened the kiss. When she pulled back he stared into her eyes. "Show me?" he asked. Hermione grinned as she turned her back to him, placing his hand on her hip. "If you look closely you can see a slight rounding right there" she said, sliding his hands over a spot just above her pubic bone between her hips.

It was true. Ron could see a very slight rise at the spot where his hand had just been. He turned her around and bent over to stand on his knees, his face level with her stomach. He placed feather-soft kisses on the bump before nestling his cheek to her skin. Hermione laughed at the feeling of his stubble tickling her.

"We need a nickname for the baby" Ron said suddenly. Hermione frowned at this, clearly confused. "What?" "The baby needs a nickname until we know what gender it is. I don't like revering to our child as an 'it'" he explained. "Okay, what did you have in mind?" Hermione asked. "What about turnip?" Ron asked. "No way, we are not calling the baby 'turnip'" she said, looking amused. "What about Chudley then?" "Because of the Cannons? I think it sounds a lot like a boys name, and like you said, we don't know the gender yet."

"What about butterfly? You said it feels like butterflies when the baby moves" Ron said, standing up to look into Hermione's chocolate eyes. Those chocolate eyes were now filling with tears. Damn Ronald, he had the emotional range of a teaspoon when it came to most things, but since that first kiss every time it involved her he would find a way to sweep her off of her feet. He really was such a sweetheart. "If you don't like it we can find something else" Ron said, already starting to back-paddle from whatever he did this time. "No" she said, shaking her head. "Butterfly's perfect" Hermione was now mentally cursing her hormones for making her cry so much.


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait, but I have a newly found respect for those who are good at IT and life in general. While tying to come up for an idea for this chapter, i got another idea and started a new fic that can fit into this one between certain chapters called If You Just Believe (don't judge, I came up with this monstrosity of a name on the wrong side of midnight) if anybody cares. I won't abandon this fic, but I do have a lot of work to do until mid December (but I already have everything planned until the end of this fic). If you have any ideas, suggestions, criticism/advice or prompts regarding either of these fics, please let me know. Thank you for reading, enjoy and please review.**

 **PS. sorry for the long note**

Ron ran up the Hogwarts steps to the Entrance Hall, praying that his wife was okay. At the top stood Professor McGonagall. It was her patronus that gave him the message.

Earlier that day, Hermione had gone into the forbidden forest surrounding Hogwarts. The ministry had asked her some time ago to try negotiate with the Centaurs about their territory, seeing as she was one of the few humans they would talk to.

The negotiations had gone well, but as Hermione was leaving, she found herself being approached by the last remaining Death Eaters. She started running, but it proved to be less effective than usual. Being pregnant made things more difficult, even if her bump was too small to get in the way yet.

She fired spells over her shoulder as she went, hoping that it would slow them down. Upon firing another Stunning Spell, Hermione tripped over a branch on the floor and fell through the protective barrier around Hogwarts, disappearing from the Death Eaters' view.

It was a hard fall however. She might be safe from the Death Eaters, but she was now lying out of breath and in pain on her side. Her vision was blurry and her head throbbed too much to determine all the sources of pain in her body. As things started to go dark, she felt herself being lifted off the ground by a pair of strong arms.

When she woke almost an hour later, Ron was there, holding her hand. He looked worried, and it took her brilliant mind a moment to figure out why. She was lying in the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts after passing out near Hagrid's hut. It all came back to her. The Centaurs, the Death Eaters, the fall.

"Ron" she croaked out, her voice raspy from lack of use. Ron looked up and smiled. "Hey" he said, leaning in to kiss her. "Death Eaters. You have to call the ministry" Hermione said, her eyes wide. "Shh, it's okay. Hagrid said you muttered something about it just before you passed out. The ministry already caught them" Ron explained. "It wasn't very hard- you stunned most of them before you fell" he added proudly.

At that moment, Madame Pomfrey walked in with Professor McGonagall. "How are you feeling?" she asked. She took out her wand and listened to Hermione's heart. "Sore. I've been better" Hermione answered. "I can imagine. Hagrid said you took one hell of a fall" said Professor McGonagall. She had been very worried when Hagrid came in with an unconscious Hermione in his arms. She was very fond of Hermione and had become her motherly figure at Hogwarts.

While Hermione was unconscious, Madame Pomfrey did a thorough examination of her injuries and explained to Ron that Hermione and the baby were both fine. Hermione's right side had taken most of the impact, but her belly was still a bit bruised. She also hit the side of her head, which was still sensitive to touch, but luckily she didn't have a concussion. Her ribs and shoulder were tender and she had a twisted ankle, but it all could have been a lot worse.

Hermione's worst problems were caused by the pregnancy itself, which included her aching abdomen and chest, her nausea and fatigue. At 20 weeks, Hermione already won the cup for the most difficult Weasley pregnancy that anybody could remember, not that any of it was her fault. She also took the cup for carrying the smallest during a Weasley pregnancy- her waist has only expanded 25 cm since the first time Ron had measured it over two months ago.

Ron at least knew that the baby was fine; he could feel it kicking while Hermione was unconscious. To help brighten her horrible day, Madame Pomfrey told Hermione she had to do an ultrasound, so Hermione could find out the gender of their baby.

Ron's heart skipped a beat as the wand moved across Hermione's tummy. "It's a girl" he heard the Madame Pomfrey say. The smile that spread across his face couldn't have been bigger if he tried. "Really?" he asked. Hermione turned her head to look at him. "Are you happy?" she asked him. "Happy? Hermione, I'm absolutely thrilled. I was secretly hoping that it would be a girl. After seeing the way your father acts around you, I've always wanted a little princess of my own." Ron grinned. He was like a child, barely able to stand still. "I wanted a girl so I could teach her how to dance, braid her hair, scare away boys, stuff like that."

Hermione smiled up at him. He sat down next to her and placed a kiss on her tummy. "I knew it would be a girl, that's why I suggested butterfly" Ron whispered. A tear made its way down Hermione's cheek as she looked at him. Ron had changed so much over the years. When she first met him she would never have imagined that he could be this romantic, or thoughtful, loving, gentle and caring. "Love you" she whispered.

"Love you too" Ron answered. He would never be able to explain how relieved he was when Hermione had open her beautiful eyes. His world would end if anything ever happened to her or his daughter. "I love you so much. Both of you" he said softly as a tear rolled down his cheek.


	44. Chapter 44

**A/N: I am sorry about changing my name, but parents shouldn't be able to read your fanfics. I know it's been a while since the last time i posted something, but exams have been hectic. Enjoy and please review.**

The snow fell softly outside. A few random snowflakes stuck to Ron's clothes, eventually falling to the floor of the entrance hall at Grimmauld Place. He took off his coat and let it hang on the coat rack. "Hermione" he called from the bottom of the stairs. He heard a response from the kitchen, and changed course to walk down the stairs to greet his wife.

He wrinkled his nose as he entered the kitchen. Something smelled very unappetising. Ron soon realised that this revolting smell was coming from the saucepan on the stove. He took a deep breath and let out a sigh. Hermione was starting to have cravings now, and some of the combinations were just absolutely horrible. With all his Gryffindor courage, Ron took a step forswads and wrapped his arms around her middle section. "Hi" he said, kissing her neck. She turned her head a bit to give him a proper kiss.

He stole a glance at the contents of the saucepan and shuddered. "Mione, what exactly is in that?" he asked, pointing at the thick brew in front of her.

"I'm not exactly sure, but I can't imagine that it tastes good" she answered.

"Then why are you making it?" Ron asked. He didn't know why anybody would ever want to drink that mixture.

"Because of these stupid hormones" Hermione cried out. Her eyes were filling with tears, and he could see that she felt ridiculous and ashamed because she couldn't control what she felt.

"I know this sounds disgusting, but I can't stop thinking about drinking this" she said, pointing at the now-boiling brew. "For some reason, my usually logical brain decided that I am craving peanut butter, marsh mellows, watermelon, cheese, popcorn, bacon, chocolate and tomato sauce. I mean look at it!" she exclaimed. As if on cue, a piece of popcorn appeared. "it looks nauseating, yet somehow my upset stomach chose this- this concoction as a cure for my nausea." She was punctuating each word with hand gestures.

Ron realised that he needed to calm Hermione down, and made a mental note not to ask about her cravings again. She couldn't help wanting these weird combinations, and he knew that she was getting frustrated with all her emotions. Hermione poured a thick blob of the concoction into a glass and drank it. As she swallowed, Ron felt the bile rise in his throat. This was absolutely mental. He suddenly felt very thankful for being a man.

*#*#*#*#*#*#*

A few days later, Ginny entered the kitchen to find Ron heating the kettle with his wand. She walked over to a cabinet and took out two mugs for tea, sitting down to wait for the kettle to boil.

Much to her surprise, the kettle never did boil. Ron removed his wand just after the steam started spiralling. "Ron, the kettle hasn't boiled yet" she said, sounding very confused.

"I know" he answered. "I just need the water to be warm, not hot."

"Why?" Ginny asked, suddenly very curious.

"It's for Hermione's water bottle. The cold is getting to her, so I am trying to help. I don't want the bottle to be too hot though" Ron explained.

He screwed the cap into the blue hot water bottle before returning the kettle to the stove. "All yours" he said as he started walking away.

"Ron" Ginny called after him. He stopped and turned around to face her. "Thank you for taking such good care of her. The winter is going to be cold, and I know this isn't exactly easy for her, but I can see you doing everything you can to make her comfortable" she said, walking over to give him a hug. "You're very sweet." Ron ducked his head to hide his red cheeks, muttering something as he left.


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N:Please review**

Hermione laid panting on her side. Sweat was covering her exposed skin, meaning that her entire body felt clammy. "This was a good idea" she panted. "I feel much warmer now."

"You're the bright one" Ron commented from his spot next to her. "I believe it was your idea to try skin to skin contact. I also believe that you were the one that practically tackled me" he added with a smirk.

She smacked his arm with the back of her hand, but smiled nonetheless. "I don't think I've been this horny since that one time at the family reunion a few years back" she said. "Sorry for tackling you."

Ron turned to face her and tugged a random curl behind her ear. "Don't apologise. I don't mind, and you can always blame the hormones" he teased. "I am completely at your disposal." he placed is big hand over the bulging skin of her abdomen, running his thumb over her belly button.

The baby planted a kick right in the middle of his palm, and Ron smiled at his wife. "Are you sure we didn't hurt her?" he asked again.

"I'm sure, Ron. It barely felt uncomfortable to me" she assured him.

"Only because you are too hard-headed to realise when you are in pain."

The couple spoke softly for a few more minutes when Hermione suddenly stopped mid sentence and closed her eyes, squeezing Ron's arm in discomfort. He sat up quickly. "Hermione, what's wrong?" he asked. She kept perfectly still and held her breath. Ron could feel the worry build up inside of him. "Hermione?" he said again.

This time she slowly opened her glazed over eyes and exhaled.

"I'm alright" she said, still sounding out of breath.

Ron asked if they should go to the hospital, but she convinced him that she was fine. She shifted to find a more comfortable position. Upon seeing Ron's disbelieve, she continued. "Look, us shagging had nothing to do with this. It's just Braxton Hicks. I had one yesterday in the shower as well. I'm fine, it just takes some getting used to" she said. "this has nothing to do with your dick" she laughed.

Ron smiled before his face went serious again. "Are you sure?" he asked. She nodded and kissed his hand before placing it on her stomach. "Promise" she said. A series of kicks hit Ron's palm. "She's going crazy in there" he commented. Hermione smiled. "They're getting stronger. It feels funny" she said as she reached over to switch on the light.

Ron's jaw dropped when he saw the skin moving as all the little bulges came and went, the skin creating little waves from all the movement. Hermione laughed at his reaction. He suddenly grew very concerned. "Does it hurt?" he asked her. He knew that her uterus was still very sensitive from Bellatrix's curse, but the look on her face made him relax.

"It's just a dull ache." she said. Ron placed his hand over her moving tummy again as a broad smile crossed his face. He leaned down and placed soft kisses on her skin.

He got up and went over to grab the camera. Slowly he slid the comforter down to expose Hermione's stomach to take a picture of the movement. On his way back from returning the camera to its spot on the shelf, he stopped to make a note on the cardboard on the wall.

Ron took his pillow and moved it down next to Hermione's belly. She instinctively started playing with his hair while he whispered to the baby, stroking tender circles over the bump. Hermione's eyes were getting heavy, but she was still curious about what Ron was saying to the baby.

"It's a secret" he answered with a smirk when she asked him. "I'm telling her to calm down so yo can fall asleep" he added.

She flashed him a smile that made his heart skip a beat. "I can fall asleep just fine, I'm used to her moving around by now" she said. After a while, Ron moved his pillow back up, thinking that his wife was asleep.

"Ron" she said groggily. "Could you grab my bra? I think you tossed it near the end of the bed"

Ron blushed a bit; he never would get used to her talking like that in his presence. "Are you okay?" he asked. This was becoming his catchphrase when it came to her.

"Mmm, fine. My chest is just hurting a bit" she mumbled. Ron crawled off the bed and went to look for it. When he finally found the lace bra, she was fast asleep. He kissed her head and cuddled up behind her.

 **A/N: The horny family reunion Hermione was reffering to happened in chapter 7 of my other WIP called If You Just Believe, and it's slight prequel is a oneshot called Touch Me**


	46. Chapter 46

**A/N: I'm sorry for the long wait, and I'm even more sorry for how short this chapter is, but life is being an arsehole and time is screwing me over. I will post again ASAP, but for now, please enjoy and review.**

 **PS. Before I forget again, thanks for all the reviews, you guys are great. Btw, I've posted two more oneshots in the little bit of free time I've had if anybody is interested.**

It was another Sunday afternoon, and the Weasley's were once again all gathered at the Burrow for lunch. The lunch itself passed by with a few jokes and pranks, but was over all rather uneventful, especially by Fred and George's standards.

After lunch, Ginny offered to make tea for everyone, and while the rest of the company retired to the living room, Hermione decided to keep Ginny company.

"Stop showing off with that ridiculously small babybump of yours" said Ginny as Hermione sat down easily for someone who was now six months pregnant. Hermione rolled her eyes with a smile and ran a hand over her belly.

"I believe I do deserve some privileges. I mean, you had the most perfect pregnancy known to man-you barely had any symptoms. You got laid, you got fat, and nine months later you popped out a son. I, on the other hand, am six months along and I still get nauseous. I can't even tell if it's morning sickness or not, thanks to Bellatrix and a drunk driver when I was four" Hermione sighed. "I feel like rubbish, everything hurts; my breasts honestly feel like they are about to pop. Sorry, I just had to get that out. If Ron hears me complaining I won't leave St Mungo's until she's born."

"It's fine" Ginny smiled. "Does my brother still follow you around everywhere?"

Hermione held up a finger. "Watch this" she told Ginny. In a normal speaking voice, she simply said: "Ron, can you come in here please?" Within five seconds, Ron appeared. He hunched down in front of his wife and placed his hands on her knees.

"Are you okay?" he asked. Hermione had to hide her smirk with a smile; she could see Ginny dying in he sink just behind Ron.

"I'm fine. Can you maybe just bring me my bag? It's in the living room."

Ron ran out and returned with her bag in record time. "Thanks" she said as he handed it to her.

"Do you need anything else? Tea? Water? Loo?" he asked her. She shook her head and assured him that she was alright. He kissed her head before he left.

Hermione raised an eyebrow at Ginny (who was still red with laughter). "You trained him well. Harry barely did anything other than panic and bring me tea" Ginny teased.

"He does that all by himself, I don't even have a chance to ask. He knows I don't like asking for help, and he doesn't want me to suffer because I'm too shy" Hermione explained.

"It's still bloody adorable" Ginny laughed. "As you wish" she mocked with a bow.

"It is kind of cute. I don't want to embarrass him, because he is being really sweet and I appreciate it, but it can be very amusing sometimes" Hermione smiled.

After the tea finished boiling, Ron came into the kitchen so that he could help carry the tray out. "Who'd have thought Ron would turn out to be the gentleman in this family?" Ginny teased.


	47. Chapter 47

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait, but exams are almost over. I started a challenge I set up for myself to see how many fics inspired by my favourite songs by Florence and the Machine I can write, and I've already posted a few if anybody's interested. Enjoy and please review.**

 **PS. I fixed a few errors.**

 _I have walked amongst men and dwarves, and they embraced me as their kin. I have travelled to faraway lands on the backs of horses and dragons. I have stopped for a spot of tea with the Queen and a hobbit; have fought wars against magic, mortals and immortals._

Ron was frozen. He was sweating, his heart was racing, he was in a complete panic. He just stood there for a few seconds, staring at the ground. The ground where his wife was lying. All he could do for those few seconds was stand and stare before his autopilot kicked in and took over. Hermione needed him, and she needed him now.

*#*#*#*#*#

Ron and Hermione arrived at the Burrow. It was a Sunday afternoon, and as always they were having lunch together as a family. Hermione was absolutely exhausted, and the couple nearly didn't show up at all. While the men were packing everything, the women were handling the dishes and food.

Mrs Weasley had insisted that Ron take Hermione into the living room to sit down and relax. She was reading when James, who was sleeping in a cot in the corner, started stirring. Ron picked the little tot up as he started to cry. Hermione started reading her book out loud. This part seemed like a speech given by a character. Ron smiled at her, not only because James stopped crying, but because he loved in when she read to him.

*#*#*#*#*#

 _I have soared amongst the stars, and the ocean's arms have carried me to swim in depths unbeknownst to man. I have cried tears of joy and sorrow, have felt both great happiness and tremendous pain, but I am still here, ready for more._

Hermione was thrashing around on the floor. Gently, Ron rolled her onto her side and placed a thin scatter cushion under her head. She was vomiting now. She curled up into a ball around her abdomen. Ron took the syringe from her bag and used his hands to tug her knees and arms away from her torso. He was working fast now, inserting the needle and pushing the plunger. It has almost been a full minute.

He could hear her groaning through the sound of her last words echoing in his mind. This had to stop. Both Hermione and the baby could be at risk. "Get the floo ready. The second she stops I'm taking her to St Mungo's" he said to no one in particular, although Harry and George were the first to respond.

*#*#*#*#*#*#

The kitchen must be clean, for the first people started to join them in the living room. James was pulling faces at Hermione from his spot in Ron's lap. Hermione crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue, causing the child to squeal with laughter.

Upon seeing his mother, James stuck out his arms. "Up" he commanded. Clearly his Uncle Ron's lap wasn't good enough any more. Ginny picked him up and held him on her hip, showering his faces in kisses. Hermione stood up to move over so that there would be enough seats.

Suddenly, Hermione's right hand flew to her tiny belly, her left hand grabbing the armrest for support. Her face knotted in pain and she let out a gasp. Ron saw her knees give in, but he was just too late to catch her. Luckily she had braced herself and hadn't fallen too hard. Then the seizure started, and Ron froze.

*#*#*#*#*#

 _I have stood on the shoulders of giants, commanding to be heard, demanding to be seen. Death is an old acquaintance, I do not fear him. When he comes to collect me, we shall go forth as equals._

The seizing stopped after two painstakingly long minutes. Ron gathered Hermione up in his arms, cradling her against his chest as he walked over to the fireplace. He stepped in, being careful not to bump her head. "St Mungo's" he said in a clear voice. He was surprisingly calm as they started spinning towards the hospital.

A nurse came running over to them once Ron stepped out of the fireplace. "My wife just had a seizure caused by a Cruciatus Curse during the war. She is 26 weeks pregnant." Ron told the nurse. She nodded before pushing the wheelchair towards a pair of swinging doors, barking orders as she went.

#*#*#

 _I have become fearless, for I can look Fear in the eye, daring in ways a coward cannot. I have lived and loved, had great many adventures, saw civilizations rise and fall, and even after all this death and destruction I am still here. I am still standing._

An eternity later, the nurse called Ron into the room. Hermione was lying on a bed in a gown. Her skin was pale and clammy, but her eyes shone with life. She was okay. "We're okay, Ron" she said, stretching her hand out to take his.

The healer explained that both Hermione and the baby were fine. The protection spells had worked and everything was alright. He also put Hermione's mind at ease when he explained that although she was carrying very small, the baby's development was right on target. Hermione's womb was simply too damaged to stretch so big so fast, and the baby was simply a little bit smaller than usual. "I can show you if you'd like." Both parents nodded vigorously. The healer left to go get the machine.

###

 _I have found my spine in that of a book, and my home between its pages. Even though my passport is empty, my bookmark is filled with memories of brilliance. I have become the author of my own tale, what have you done?_


	48. Chapter 48

**A/N: It's been a while, but I'm back. Unfortunately this chapter is very short, but it is necessary in order for the next chapter to make sense. The good news is that the exams are finished so I have quite a bit of free time to spend on writing, and the next chapter is already complete. Also, I'm planning on writing a 12 day Christmas marathon, starting 21/12, and the dates will be up on my profile if you are interested. Enjoy and please review.**

"Ron, grab a few candles from the cupboard on your way down" Hermione yelled from her position on the 3rd floor landing. A few seconds later he came rushing past, arms filled with various items, including the candles.

"Harry and Ginny are almost done packing" he told her.

"Tell them to stop, I don't want them coming with" she said, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Good luck telling them otherwise. They already decided they're coming with, and my parents will be here any minute now" he responded.

"Ron, I can't ask them to risk their lives for me"

"You're not asking"

"But this is my fight. I'm the one they're after"

"It's our fight, and we need them to come with. We can use the extra protection" Ron said, placing a gentle hand on Hermione's small belly. She looked exhausted; the past few hours have been hell.

Just after the 30 week checkup at St Mungo's, Ron and Hermione received a message from Kingsley's patronus telling them to go on the run. Just a few hours prior, there was a prison break at Azkaban. Only one person escaped, but this just so happened to be the person that ended up in Azkaban solely because of Hermione's testimony.

Stuart Millard was convicted for the murders of his cousin and two nephews. Hermione was shadowing Kingsley while he was working this case, and overheard Stuart confessing to the murders to his brother before killing him as well. The prosecution had a lot of evidence, but Hermione's testimony sealed the deal. After the trial he swore that he would get his revenge, and if Ron doesn't hurry up, he just might.

Mr and Mrs Weasley showed up with three suitcases, declaring that they were coming as well. Hermione was about to slam the door in their faces, but Mrs Weasley simply grabbed her and gave her a gentle hug. The poor girl broke down crying, thanking them.

Not long after his parents' arrival, Ron was packed and ready to go. The plan was to camp out in the forest within Hogwarts' borders. This way, Hermione would be safe and well hidden until the ministry could track down Stuart Millard. Harry left a few minutes prior to fetch Mr Granger and Daniel, since they could be used to lure Hermione out.

With one last look around, the Weasleys turned and apparated to Hogsmeade. They had a lot of supplies with them, but luckily they could levitate them to where they were needed. This was going to be the start of a few eventful weeks.


	49. Chapter 49

**A/N: I tried my best to do research on the following events, but eventually decided to go for "eh, close enough, she's a tortured witch anyway" and hope for the best. Thank you for reading and please review.**

 **PS. The 12 days of Christmas dates are on my profile.**

Ron stared absentmindedly at the fire, thinking deeply. This reminded him a lot of their time spent on the run during the war. The difference between then and was that now he knew his family was safe, but he wasn't so sure of Hermione's safety. Back then, Ron only knew that Hermione and Harry's safety was relatively guaranteed.

He stood up and kissed his mother good night. Hermione had gone to sleep a couple of hours ago, and he reckoned that it was time to go check on her. He opened the door softly as he snuck into the room. A cold feeling passed over him. Hermione wasn't on the bed, instead she was lying on the floor in a little ball.

He rushed over to her, feeling her pulse. She was awake. Her skin was covered in sweat and she was clearly in a lot of pain. "Ron" she said softly. Something was very wrong, Hermione pyjama bottoms were soaked through. "My water broke" she said, her face drawn in pain.

Ron jumped up and ran to fetch his mother. After more cussing than Ron had ever heard from her, Hermione was finally lying on the bed. Mrs Weasley carefully spread the girl's legs and used her wand to get a better look. "She's already dilating- she's almost at four centimetres" she said.

Molly then moved to sit next to Hermione, muttering a bunch of incantations while waving her wand over her belly. "The baby hasn't dropped yet. Hermione, I'm going to have to turn her" she explained. Hermione gave a weak nod, grabbing Ron's hand and squeezing.

He sat down next to her shoulder, covering her small hand in both of his. "Shh, it's going to be alright, honey" he said, surprisingly calm. "Squeeze as hard as you want" he smiled. She returned a weak smile before she shut her eyes and squeezed his hands with all her might. She tried to refrain from screaming, which resulted in twisted moans escaping her throat. Mrs Weasley slowly turned the baby, and after what felt like an eternity, finally lifted her hands from Hermione's abdomen.

Molly was surprised by how much this hurt Hermione. Usually turning the baby was uncomfortable, but it was never this bad. She only know fully realised how badly Hermione was injured. Ginny and Mr Granger came in, carrying towels and a glass of water.

Hermione was crying. "Keep her inside" she begged. "It's not safe. Keep her inside." Ginny tried to get Hermione comfortable, placing pillows and towels where needed.

"It's the stress" Molly whispered to Ron. "All the stress induced early labour. The baby will be fine, she's past 32 weeks, but it's not going to be easy."

Mr Granger kneeled down next to his daughter, stroking her face. "Now, I don't want any heroics from you" he said gently. "Don't try to be strong, that's Ron's job. Scream and cry as loud as you want, because it's going to hurt like hell, honey" he told her. He wiped the tears away with his thumb, kissing her head before moving back to give them some space.

Ron immediately moved to fill the spot Mr Granger had just vacated. He spoke softly to his wife, until she slipped into a fitful sleep. When she woke a few hours later, her cervix was almost completely dilated.

Mrs Weasley found Ron wiping Hermione's face with a wet cloth. It was freezing outside, it was still late January, but she was sweating profusely. Her contractions were now only mere minutes apart. Another one hit, causing her to curl up in pain. She started vomiting, and Ron managed to grab a nearby bin just in time. He could physically see her small belly contracting.

The sun was starting to rise, it was almost morning, but Hermione didn't feel like she slept at all. Molly felt her tummy again, causing her to squirm. The ache remained even after the pressure was gone.

"Okay, on the next contraction I want you to push as hard as you can, dear" Mrs Weasley instructed. Hermione nodded, doing her best to brace herself. The next contraction came, and she arched her back, pushing as hard as she could. With a groan she pulled herself into sitting position, panting from the effort.

She wanted to cry out, but the cries reminded her too much of Malfoy Manor. After an hour, the head was almost visible. It was going slower than it was supposed to, but there was nothing any of them could do. When the next contraction hit, Hermione was on her hands and knees, trying to find a semi-comfortable position. Poor Ron did his best to comfort her, but nothing seemed to make a difference.

It took four more hours of pushing before the baby started crowning. Hermione's entire body was sore and exhausted, and Molly feared that she wouldn't be able to last much longer-she was bleeding quite a bit. With another big push from Hermione, the baby came out. Molly and Ginny were both so busy with the baby that they didn't even notice that Hermione had passed out. Ron spent the next three minutes trying to revive her. If the healer didn't warn him that this could happen, he would've been in a flat spin.

A contraction came while she was still unconscious, making her body jerk as the muscles pulled together in a spasm. She howled in pain, feeling the protection charms break. Mrs Weasley had to use a spell to help Hermione deliver the placenta because she felt too weak.

A grinning Ron knelt down next to her, holding their daughter. "Look, there's Mummy" he said, angling her so Hermione could see her face. "She's beautiful, Mione. You did a great job" he told his wife, kissing her forehead. She was crying silently, relief washing over her. Their baby was okay, she was beautiful and alive.

The first feeding was more difficult than the parents expected. Hermione's breasts hurt, and the baby struggled to latch onto her sensitive nipple, but eventually she was fed. While Ron went to give the baby her first bath, Hermione fell asleep, and slept for a long time.

Ron was still worried about her. She was bleeding quiet heavily, and even though his mother told him it was normal, he still couldn't relax. He was enraged, Hermione and his daughter deserved better than this. His daughter deserved to be born in a hospital, and his wife deserved the option of pain potions, but instead she had to give birth in a tent near Hogwarts.

He looked down at the little bundle in his arms, and vowed to be the best father he could. He promised to always protect her, this currently unnamed, breathing potato of joy in his arms.


	50. Chapter 50

**A/N: Enjoy and please review**

It has been three days since Hermione gave birth, three weeks since the escape from Azkaban, and the Ministry was still not closer to finding Stuart Millard. There have been a few leads, but none of them have led to anything.

In the tent near Hogwarts, the Weasleys were still hiding. Poor Hermione was exhausted, and her entire body ached from the labour of delivering a child. Ron did his best to comfort her by massaging her back, hips and stomach, but unfortunately he couldn't do anything to ease the pain in her chest.

Her milk came in this morning, and it felt like somebody had kicked her in the chest. To make matters worse, Baby Rose was getting hungry. She could feel her mother's stress and anxiety over the past few days, and that made her very hard to calm down. Ultimately the only working solutions so far were for Hermione to lay down with Rose on her chest (for skin to skin contact) or to for Hermione to feed her.

Alas, neither of these options were very appealing to the fatigued new mother. Her breasts hurt like hell, and most attempts to feed her daughter simply became pain endurance exercises to her.

Rose fed often and struggled to latch on at first. For more than half the feedings, Hermione could only get her daughter to latch onto the nipple, instead of the areola as well, which was quite agonising.

Mrs Weasley tried her best to help an embarrassed Hermione, but it yielded no results. In the end she just had to steel herself and suffer through. The new father was pissed off with the world, because he wanted the first few days with the only child they will ever have to be magical, but instead he only saw pain from his wife. He knew that she adored their daughter, but had a hard time showing it at the moment.

*#*#*#*

Just two nights ago, Ron came into their room to find a worn-out Hermione holding their child in her arms. She was softly tracing the sleeping baby's delicate features with her finger, staring in absolute awe. It was first time he'd seen her so calm and peaceful in weeks.

He sat down next to her and pulled her to his chest, softly stroking her hair. "What's your bright mind thinking about?" he asked her.

"I was thinking that she needs a name" Hermione said softly, running her hand over the baby's soft curls. "We were going to decide on names closer to my due date."

Ron smiled at her. She was still in there, somewhere beneath all the sore muscles and exhaustion. "Do you have anything in mind?" he asked.

She shook her head. "My mind is too tired to think. She needs a name that won't define her personality, I don't want her to feel like she needs to live up to the name. I want a name that will allow her to feel free, strong and beautiful, but won't force her to feel that way" Hermione sighed. "I just want something that will suit her perfection."

Ron chuckled. For someone that was too tired to think, she'd given this quite a bit of thought. He thought for a second, running through a list of female names in his head. "What about Rose?"

Hermione cocked her head to one side, contemplating it. "Actually, that's perfect" she smiled, sounding quite surprised.

"Always the tone of surprise" Ron mocked, earning him a slight nudge. He had lost count of the amount of times they had said this to each other; he could barely remember how it had started.

She rolled her eyes at him, but he caught her smirk before she continued. "Roses are elegant and delicate, but they are also tough and strong. There are so many different types of roses that she won't feel that she has to be just one thing, and roses have thorns so they can protect themselves" she explained excitedly. "What's more, in Juliet's soliloquy-"

"Juliet's solilowhat?" Ron asked, looking so adorably confused that Hermione couldn't help but laugh.

"Juliet's soliloquy. It's from the play Romeo and Juliet. Don't worry, I'll explain that part later. Anyway, in the soliloquy she goes on about how a name doesn't make the person. That if a rose was called anything else it would still be a rose, it would still have all the qualities that the rose has, even if you were to call it something different. Therefore, it will be perfect, because regardless of who Rose chooses to be, she will still just be our Rose, because her name doesn't define her" Hermione finished.

"So you've made up your mind? Our daughter now has a name?"

Hermione nodded. "Her name is Rose" she smiled, a single tear running down her cheek.

Ron kissed the tear, reminding her that he will always love her, before turning his head to look at his daughter. "She looks like you" he said.

"Maybe, it's hard to tell. She just looks like a potato at the moment" Hermione said.

Ron's eyes went wide. "You agree with me then? Did I actually just win an argument with you?" he asked in disbelieve. Just a couple of weeks ago he commented on how all newborns are basically potatoes up to the age of one, which Hermione said was a lie.

"Don't get to used to it" she laughed. She was once again reminded that she had married the best man in the world.

"Well, she has your nose, ears and eyes, except for the dark blue colour, of course. But aside from the auburn hair and blue eyes, she looks just like you did as a baby."

"She does have your chin though" Hermione noted.

"Poor child. You know, she would've been gorgeous if it weren't for the fact-"

"Hey, I like your chin. And I think it's good that she has your chin. She's supposed to look like both of us. I can't be solely responsible for her looks" she interrupted.

"So whose responsibility was it to give her the freckles?" Ron teased.

"Well, I believe that was your job, since you have way more than I have."

"And the birthmark above her right hip?"

Hermione glared at him, blushing. "You know damn well where that came from, seeing as you've been kissing that spot for years now. I can't believe that it carried over. It's very rare for children to get a parent's birthmark."

*#*#*#*

Right now Ron would give anything to have the playful Hermione back. Instead, he was now trying to calm his wife enough to feed their wailing child. It was a vicious cycle of events. Hermione was panicking because her breasts were too full for Rose to latch on, and Rose was panicking because she was hungry and because her mother was panicking. This led to Hermione panicking more, which meant that Rose was panicking more, and so the cycle continued.

Eventually Ginny appeared from somewhere akin to heaven, and took Rose from her mother's arms. "I've got her. Go calm Hermione" she said, whispering advice into her brother's ear.

So Ron did as he was told. He helped his wife over to the bathroom and cast a silencing charm on the room. The silence sounded sweet and wonderful to his ringing ears. Gently he set his wife down on the edge of the bath, talking to her in a reassuring tone.

"I'm a failure. I can't even feed my daughter, how will I ever be able to protect her?" she cried over his voice. Ron looked over at her from the sink where he was busy waiting for hot water.

"You are not a failure. Lots of new mothers have the same problem as you do, that doesn't mean they aren't great mothers" he said. "And you will be an awesome mother, and I will be there to help you protect her. You're not alone in this."

Ron shut the tap off and walked over with a warm cloth. "Take off your shirt" he said.

With a confused look, she pulled her shirt over her head. Ron gestured for her to remove her bra, and once again she complied. "This is going to be sore and uncomfortable, but Ginny says it works like a charm" he warned.

His wife was still frowning at him when he picked the warm cloth up, but understood when he placed it over her left breast. She grimaced as he softly started massaging her chest, but could feel the pressure start to ease. She bit her lip as some of the milk was expressed and moistened her sensitive nipple. "Better?" Ron asked, moving to do the same on the other side.

She nodded. "Thank you" she said, although no words could express her gratitude.

Once both the mother and the baby were relatively calm, Hermione tried again to feed Rose. This time Rose latched on with ease, and Ron was pleased to see that his wife didn't look like she was being brutally tortured.

Things were getting better. Now all that was needed was for the Ministry to catch the psychopath that put them in his position, so that Ron could give him a piece of his mind before taking his wife and daughter to the hospital.


	51. Chapter 51

**A/N: Thank you for reading and please review**

Ron was running next to the gurney, gripping Hermione's hand tightly. She was still unconscious, but at least he could see that she was breathing. The healers kept asking him questions, but he couldn't answer the most important one. What happened to her?

Just a few hours ago she was fine. It has been almost a week since she gave birth to their daughter, and it was the first time that she went outside. Her body was still very sore and she was still worn-out, as was expected.

*#*#*#*

Hermione and Rose were sitting on a blanket outside. It was still cold outside, but at least the sun was shining. Mr Granger had gone inside a few minutes earlier to go fetch another pillow, which left Hermione and her daughter outside alone.

Ron and Harry had gone to fetch more firewood, and Ginny was somewhere inside the tent playing with James and Daniel. Mr and Mrs Weasley were lying down for a kip. It was a rather nice day for January.

At first Hermione didn't think much of the footsteps she heard, but she realised something was wrong when nobody called out a greeting. She quickly rose to her unsteady feet, wand in hand.

She stood up just in time to react to the killing curse coming her way. It was Stuart Millard. Somehow he had found them. Hermione guessed that he must've paid someone off from the Ministry.

There was a fight between them, spells flying everywhere. Hermione turned her back when she stopped a jinx from hitting Rose. Stuart took this opportunity to cast a curse. It hit her right beneath her ribcage, for he never was good at aiming.

A gunshot sounded, echoing through the forest air. Before Stuart could finish the incantation, a bullet ripped through his skull and he fell to the floor. In her last moment of consciousness, Hermione saw her father lowering his firearm. "Not my daughter, arsehole" he said, repeating the words similar to those Mrs Weasley had said just before killing Bellatrix.

Mr Granger rushed over to his daughter, but Ron got to her before he did, moving like he was shot from a cannon. Everybody was standing outside the tent, Ginny covering the children's eyes so they wouldn't see. Mrs Weasley picked up the crying Rose, and Ron gently gathered his wife up in his arms.

"Do you know what incantation he used?" he asked. Mr Granger nodded.

"He didn't finish it" he said.

Ron stood up, holding his wife in his arms. "She's still breathing. I'm going to run to the edge and apparate to St Mungo's. I'll meet you guys there" she said to his mother. "Can you keep up?" he asked Mr Granger.

They took off in a sprint to the edge of the forest, Ron carrying his unconscious wife. The second they broke through the protective charms, Ron grabbed Mr Granger and turned on the spot. They landed in the Entrance Hall at St Mungo's. Ron fell to his knees, but he didn't care.

A few seconds later he was running beside his wife's gurney, holding her hand as if it was the only thing tying her to this world. They made him wait out in a corridor, and he sank down to the floor, tears streaming down his face. He held his head in his hands, praying to every deity that she would somehow be okay.

He sat like that for a long time, before finally he felt a hand on his shoulder. His sister sank down next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. "You're such a drama queen" she said. "You're wife is in the hospital right now, and somehow you still manage to look worse than she does."

Ron gave her a quick smile. "Where's Rosie?" he asked, lifting his head to look over her shoulder.

"Sleeping. Your father-in-law was the only one that could calm her. I'd keep him around if I were you. He seems to be a big hit with all the women in your life" Ginny answered.

"I can't lose her, Ginny. She's my whole world. I can't raise Rosie alone, I need her brains" Ron said, his body shaking with suppressed sobs.

"You're not going to lose her. The bastard never finished the incantation, and Hermione is to stubborn to die" Ginny said. "Look, your wife survived goodness knows how many curses before. She's got this. I know it looks bad, but she is so much stronger than we give her credit for. She lied to Bellatrix. After all those hours of unbearable pain, she still managed to lie. That took more strength than I believe I have" she continued.

"And if push comes to shove, you won't be alone. You'll never be alone. I mean, how many times in the past few weeks have you entered a room and found it empty? We will help you as much as we can- I'll even let you borrow my superior intellect . But we're not there yet, so don't give up hope" Ginny finished, smiling through her tears.

Even though she and Hermione don't always get along, especially not in the kitchen, she does love her sister-in-law. Hermione was the one person she could share all her secrets with while growing up, the first friend that wasn't a blood relative.

After a small eternity, a nurse called out Ron's name. He flew to his feet and pulled his sister up. "You can see her now" was all the nurse said. Ron swallowed and looked over his shoulder at Ginny.

"Well, go on then" was all she said before turning and walking down the hall.

Ron entered the small room and sat down on the chair next to her. Hermione's eyes were open, but they weren't really focusing on anything. His heart skipped a beat when she squeezed his hand, because she knew that he was there. Then her eyelids dropped again.

A healer came in and explained that the curse was supposed to stun her into a coma, but because the incantation was never finished, she was simply stunned with the equivalent of Professor McGonagall's four stunning spells. She would have to spend the next two weeks in the hospital so they could monitor her, but after that she could go home. Although she would be on bedrest for the next six weeks, Hermione would eventually be fine with no long-term problems.

Ron kissed her forehead, telling her to never scare her like that again. After the healer left, Mr Granger came in, carrying a now-awake Rose. "Congratulations. You are the proud father of a very healthy little girl" he said, carefully placing the child in her father's arms. "One of the healers took a look at her while you were waiting to come in" he explained.

Ron smiled down at his daughter. She stared back up at him with her big blue eyes. "They say she's going to be alright. She'll be sore for a few more weeks, trust the git to hit her in the stomach, but she'll make a full recovery" Ron said, looking up at Mr Granger. "Thank you for what you did" he added.

"I've killed people over less than my daughter's safety. That was nothing. I didn't even hesitate about pulling the trigger as I usually did" Mr Granger answered. It might have been a while since he left the navy to join the UN, but his reflexes and instincts were still spot on.

*#*#*#*

Hermione woke up early the next morning. She couldn't help smiling at the sight of her husband holding their daughter while snoring away peacefully beside the bed. Her body was aching and moving was painful, but she was alive.


	52. Chapter 52

**A/N: So this is the last chapter for this story. There is quite a time-jump from the previous chapter, but I am planning on writing another fic to fill in a few of those gaps. Thank you for reading and all the support. Enjoy and please review.**

Hermione was running down a fire escape, trying to apparate the second her feet touched the pavement. Much to her surprise, she was still standing in the alleyway when she opened her eyes. She heard footsteps on the stairs and sprinted towards the street.

Slowing to a brisk walk, she crossed the busy street, trying to blend into the crowd. But the stinging pains originating from nowhere in particular were clouding her mind as she weaved through the horde.

She stopped at the traffic light at the end of the block, noticing the two wizards she was trying to lose catching up. Placing all her focus on the traffic light, she used wandless magic to manipulate the lights. This allowed the pedestrians to cross, but stopped her chasers from crossing as well.

At a nearby public phone, Hermione leaned against the structure for support, calling the emergency services to send out an ambulance, claiming that there was a man having a heart attack in the building behind her. She went to hide around a corner, hearing sirens in the distance. She noticed the blood above her right hip for the first time as she sat down. She must've looked mad running down the street.

Once the paramedics had gone inside, Hermione used Alohamora to open the backdoors of the ambulance. She grabbed a few supplies and left some Muggle money before taking off. She knew she needed to keep moving, but she couldn't remember why. She had no recollection of what had happened after landing in Oslo. She knew she was working undercover to help both her country and Norway, but she couldn't remember any details.

*#*#*#*

Ron was getting worried about Hermione. She looked enough like the woman they had in custody to go to the hand-off in Norway, but that was all the details that he knew. Rose, now almost one, was sitting on his lap reading to herself. After having Rose, Hermione had taken 9 months off to recover before finishing her Auror training. She was now fully qualified and occasionally worked in a team with her husband and Harry.

She was supposed to be back by now, and Ron didn't like the feeling he was getting. He called the Ministry, but they had no new information and said that she was probably just finishing the paperwork. Ron eventually put Rose to bed, but woke up every hour to see if Hermione was back yet.

The next morning there was still no sign of her, and Ron had to go to work. He was now officially very worried.

*#*#*#*

After finding a room in a cheap hotel, Hermione took the time to clean her wounds. She leaned back and put some dittany on the cut above her hip, closing her eyes as the pain intensified. Suddenly feeling very nauseous, she made her way to the loo, heaving into the bowl. She felt as if her back might break. Taking a few deep breaths, she leaned back against the tub.

The results of her diagnostic spell confirmed her suspicions. She had quite a few scrapes and bruises, a cut on her hip and another on her cheek (which she hadn't even noticed), three cracked ribs and a pretty bad concussion. "What the hell happened back there?" she wondered.

Taking the pain pills she got from the ambulance, she lied down and drifted off. She slept fitfully, and woke with a start, crawling over to the landline. She checked her watch and hoped that she was right about what she had dreamt. She had to warn Ron, and she hoped that he was at the Burrow dropping off Rosie.

Under normal circumstances she would've used her patronus, but is she couldn't apparate, she didn't know if this would work.

Luckily, Ron answered on the third ring. "Hello?" he said, and Hermione let out a sigh of relief.

"Ron" she answered.

"Hermione? Are you okay? Where are you?"

"I can't tell you. I'm fine, but it's not safe. Take Rose and run. Just go, I'll find you. I love you" she said before hanging up.

"Love you too" Ron said into the now dead line.

He wanted nothing more than to go find his wife and end whatever war was about to go down, but he realised that he had to trust that she knew what she was doing. He ran up to his room and retrieved the rucksack she had made him pack and hide just after the war. Obviously it was enlarged with an Undetectable Extension Charm and was fully equipped for every emergency.

Ron passed his confused mother on the landing and yelled out a short explanation as he picked up his daughter. Sending his patronus to Ginny and Harry, he told them to listen for any news about Hermione and not to worry about him and Rose, they were following Hermione's plan. He only hoped she could pull off her part of it and live long enough to come and find them.

*#*#*#*

Back in the Norwegian hotel room, Hermione was preparing for the battle the same way she always did- by reading. She remembered something while she was asleep, but before she could do anything she first had to find out more about the smuggling of Forbidden Dark Magic Artifacts.

 **A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger, I know it's evil, but this is where it ends. I'll leave the rest up to your imaginations, but I personally think that after doing something very epic, Hermione kicks some arse and finds her family. I might even write the conclusion as a oneshot if I have the time. Thank you all for reading.**


	53. Chapter 53

**A/N: This is my take on what happens after the previous chapter. I will be posting new fics again soon. Tanks for reading and please review.**

Ron was busy chopping wood just outside the tent. It's been almost a full month since Hermione called him, telling him to run. He followed the plan she set up after the war in case anything ever went wrong, but it did nothing to stop him from worrying about his wife.

Little Rosie has also been missing her mother, but Ron didn't know what to tell her. He just wanted his wife back safe and sound. As he lifted the axe again, he heard a twig breaking some distance behind him.

Running around the side of the tent, as quietly as he could, Ron pulled his wand out and listened. When the footsteps were close enough, he jumped out and pointed his wand, ready to stun the person.

Hermione stood at the other end of the wand. "Hey" she said calmly. Ron kept the wand firmly in place.

"In fifth year you said I had the emotional range of?" he asked.

"A teaspoon" she smiled.

Ron lowered his wand and heaved a sigh of relief. "You show up here after weeks and you say hey?" he said mockingly. Hermione simply smiled at him using her words against her, as always.

The couple hugged and kissed, before Hermione pulled away. "Where's Rose?" she asked.

"I just put her down for a nap, but I don't think she'll mind being woken by you." The couple started making their way back towards the entrance.

"So where have you been?" Ron asked.

"Everywhere"

Hermione explained that her cover was blown in Oslo, so she had to stay on the run. A smuggler named Kristoffer Haugen was running an international smuggling ring, dealing in everything from magical creatures to forbidden artefacts. He wanted Hermione killed because she was the only one that would testify against him, so he sent people to Grimmauld Place and the Burrow to look for Ron to lure her out. Hermione knew the only way to ensure the safety of her family was to take him out and shut down his operation.

This was no easy feat. More than once he manage to slip through the cracks, and often evaded the traps that had been set up for him. Ron listened with growing pride. His wife was the reason that an entire smuggling ring had been shut down.

Before entering the tent, Hermione helped pick up the chopped wood. Ron noticed her wincing as she stood up, so he threw down his wood and took hers.

"Are you alright?" he asked, the concern obvious in his voice.

"I'm fine. I'm just still sore" she answered meekly. She lifted her jersey to reveal a large bruise covering her left side and back. It was starting to heal, but still looked rather new. Ron noticed another light bruise on her forehead, and a dark one sticking out under her jersey near the base of her neck. He tenderly slid the fabric over her shoulder to reveal the slim bruise. This was by a sharp, straight object.

"That one's from a windowsill- I dodged a jinx. My collarbone shattered, but Luna repaired it" said Hermione.

"Luna?"

"Yeah. she was out in the woods looking for goodness knows what new creature. She found me running around and helped me heal."

Ron smiled before kissing her softly on her forehead. The couple entered the tent hand in hand. Rose was sleeping on the sofa. Hermione sat down next to her, gently shaking her shoulder. Rose let out a groan, reluctant to wake.

"Rose" Hermione whispered. With that the little girl flew up, her auburn hair whipping away from her face. She grinned widely as she hugged her mother tightly.

"Missed Mummy" she said in a groggy voice.

"I know sweetie. I'm sorry" said Hermione, kissing her daughter's head. "I love you"

"Love you too Mummy"

The two hugged again, and Ron saw a tear running down his wife's cheek as she looked at him over their daughter's curly hair. When Rose pulled away, Hermione angled her face to get a better look.

She had to admit that Rose definitely looks like she did at that age. Sure, she had freckles on her nose and cheeks, dark blue eyes, a red tint in her hair and her father's chin, but the rest all came from her mother. Ron also said that she inherited her mother's brilliant mind, for she was a very fast learner and spoke very well for her age.

Ron went into the kitchen to make hot cocoa, listening as his two girls conversed in short sentences. They sat in the living room sipping their beverages, Rose snuggling on Hermione's lap.

Later that night Rose went back to sleep, but not before insisting that her mother tell her a bedtime story.

The two parents sat outside near the campfire. They were both admiring the beautiful night sky.

"I missed you" said Ron.

"I missed you too" said Hermione, taking her husband's hand and interlacing their fingers.

"Just out of curiosity, how did you find us?" Ron asked.

Hermione sighed. "I'll admit it wasn't easy. I used trace magic to locate certain spells that

I knew you would use, which I deduced using logic and my knowledge on your habits and train of thought"

"Brilliant" Ron smiled, clearly both impressed and proud.

"Not really. I put a GPS tracker in your wand"

"You did not" said Ron, pulling out his wand and turning it in his hands. Eventually Hermione leaned over and twisted the base to reveal a hidden compartment. They made eye contact, then burst out laughing.

"A GPS tracker? In my wand" Ron panted, wiping tears off his red cheeks.

"I knew you wouldn't notice"

And so the two had their first snog for the first time in weeks. All was well.


End file.
